Protecting Those You Love
by Catgirl-of-Bavaria
Summary: [postLtLA] Haku returns home with a feeling that something has gone wrong, only to find that it has, bringing his world to a halt. It's only when he reenters the spirit world that he realizes the true threat to him and everyone he loves.[sum in profile]
1. A Frustrated Dragon

**-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: **Here it is, the sequel to Learning to Love Again! So, I think I've kept you guys waiting long enough for the start of this, lol. It'll be a wee bit darker than my other story, I think, with bigger things to deal with than ever was… So, this time around, it's rated T, with reason; like I said before, it's gonna be a tad darker, a bit more violence and blood(eventually) and I will, in particular parts of the story, be suggestive. I may be suggestive at times, but keep in mind that this won't turn into a lemon, otherwise I'd hide this in the M section! So just a disclaimer/warning…It shouldn't be a problem, unless you're particularly squeamish…I don't think I'm _that_ violent! Lol… And this story is kind of where my German obsession shows, other than all of my translating in OLI XD I love Germany! Woot! .:runs around manically with her German flag in the air:.

So, anyhow, enjoy the continuation, I'll be back in a while to get the next chapter up!

Disclaimer: .:sighs:. Did I not say this enough the last time? Spirited Away and its characters belong to the greatest Anime-ka ever, Hayao Miyazaki-sensei…I only borrow :D

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**Chapter 1- A Frustrated Dragon**

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Night had long since fallen across European land, the sky displayed to the world below a velvety sheet, splashed with diamonds. One large, silver orb provided light to the green landscape, a hilly spread of land dotted with small villages. Forests were plentiful all over, and a river cut through the largest of the series of villages, completing the picturesque quality of it all. It was a land sculpted brilliantly by the gods.

Even the man made features of this place were beautiful; they were crafted to so well that they only added to the beauty of the surroundings, they seemed to fit, even if humans did build them upon the land. And even with the little villages speckling the land, there was plenty of natural beauty to appreciate, to lie in between those towns.

Each town had at least one chapel or cathedral tower, each town knew what time it was at all times, for those sculpted, gothic and baroque steeples let them know the hour. When you were in a town like this, there really was no great need for a watch, for you could usually hear, if only distantly, the toll of the bells of the local cathedrals.

Stone bridges extended across the river, some of them new, but most remained there from centuries ago, and had survived wars and the decay of time. It truly was an old place, full of history, everywhere.

One foreigner cared to notice all this, as the deep rhythmic bell tolled twice to him through his window.

Kohaku sat at the window of his dormitory in this larger of villages, staring out onto this pristine land, head resting in his hand. Tired emeralds scanned the land, listening to the cathedrals around the place give their voices to the silence. He took in air, admiring how fresh it was, how soothing to his once again tortured soul.

He really did enjoy this place, and was glad that it was untainted with too much human activity. The spirits here, it seemed, were thriving quite well, and it showed through their physical manifestation and entities. Kohaku had come to really like this place called Germany. The humans here seemed to have a good respect for nature.

A while ago, he'd decided that he wanted to use his new lot in life as a human to find out more about the race, and so he decided to sign up for a German course, finding from his readings that this country would have enough culture to keep him studying and occupied, but enough nature to keep the river spirit sane.

He'd picked the language up easily, and in turn, signed up for this particular program that sent him to the country itself to play the transfer student in a German school. He'd had five spectacular months to get to know this place, on a study abroad program. It sent him here for five months, half the school term back home in Japan.

He smiled suddenly to himself; Japan was his home now.

It was almost strange, seeing as how he'd considered The Spirit realm and Aburaya his home for several years before this. Three years before this, he'd been trapped in that world with no love, save the familial love that had come from Zeniba and the once lost soul whom he now knew as Taro. Only in the past three years had he been truly happy with his life.

He peered over to his simple dormitory bed, where a lump steadily rose and fell with breath, curled up beneath fleece and cotton blanketing. His eyes softened as he caught the slight glint of chestnut brown hair falling over the pillows. He studied the form beneath the covers, which, as it was, was both the love of his long life and his partner in this German venture.

Chihiro Ogino had of course been eager to travel the human world with him, and had enrolled in the German language course along with Kohaku, and consequently, the transfer program. She'd been a little slower with the language than Kohaku, but then, he was a spirit and apparently had a knack for a great number of things. Money actually hadn't been a problem for either student, Kohaku still had a great plot of money in the bank from Zeniba-which he was beginning to suspect was an endless account…How that witch spoiled him, he frequently thought whenever withdrawing any money- and Chihiro was rather well off herself, with both parents working high-end jobs.

The last three years with this girl had been beyond perfect, if there was such a thing. Their love only seemed to grow everyday for one another, and Chihiro had guided him expertly, alongside Rumi, through the world of humans, introducing him to a world of gadgets, odd little things, that he didn't have a clue about. Apparently, the knowledge of the human world that the witch Zeniba had instilled into him only went so far, so at times, the young river spirit was on his own.

Video games had actually been his favorite, after he got the hang of how to use the labeled buttons and knobs on a joystick to control whatever character on the screen that represented him. He had to hand it to the humans about their virtual reality technology; it was rather fun and addicting, and thank the gods it was imaginative.

But, even as great as his life was going, Kohaku was feeling rather different lately, almost nervous. For more than one reason, too. It was unsettling him, it was frustrating him, and it was keeping him up on nights such as this.

Kohaku stared back out the window, contemplating his plight as a great owl soared in the distance, hunting for food.

The whole unsettled feeling had started around a month ago, and had started as a nagging in the back of his mind. It was a feeling of wanting to be back home, in the small town of Japan he'd come to call home, his modest little apartment that Zeniba had set up for him. As the previous month had worn on, he had still found excitement in his present situation, visiting sites and places in Germany, admiring the beauty alongside Chihiro. He'd even mastered the use of a camera, a device to preserve those moments, as Chihiro had told him.

But still, through all the joy he felt here, with her, something called to him from home, and it grew little by little and day by day. He couldn't help but have an unsettling feeling about it, he felt at times the indescribable urge to go home, even if it meant transforming to a dragon and flying all the way home, even considering the risk of being seen.

Chihiro had always had a coincidental ability to distract him with enjoyable ventures in the town, just when these home-sick feelings were about to get the better of him. He always managed to shove that feeling to the back of his mind, to resist it. Even now, though, he wanted desperately to be home.

This led Kohaku to the next symptom of his unease, the reason tonight of why he was out of bed. It was the first time in a while that Chihiro and he had shared a bed, and they were taking advantage of their last night in Germany by spending it in each other's arms, a cherished way to sleep for the both of them.

At least, it had started that way. Kohaku had woken halfway through the night, to find himself in a curious situation, and one that he was thankful to every possible god that Chihiro was not awake to take note of. He flushed at the memory of this incident, having these feelings almost unfamiliar to him. True, he knew what his situation was, it was only an animal reaction, and having the girl he loved so close to him in his bed, it was bound to happen one day anyway.

Hell, it was even late springtime, a well-known cause for these types of feelings that the dragon in him felt.

Still, he'd never felt such a physical need for her before, and even during the two previous spring seasons, he'd managed to keep that side of the dragon in him suppressed. He always needed her, he always loved her, and he wanted her to be his until the end of time, but these feelings had never taken physical form…until now. And it was driving him crazy.

He didn't want to get back in bed for fear of it possibly happening again, or him losing control of where his hands would venture in their sleep. But he would need sleep. In just a few hours they'd leave the dormitory building, an old, and half-dilapidated establishment, and go to the airport. Undoubtedly, the dragon would not get much sleep on the plane; the blasted things disturbed him.

There was one more thing that was bothering him, though this was a little more passive than the others, and it had been around to make him think for a longer time.

Kohaku stared at his hands; they were the hands of a twenty year old human. But that even was a close call to being possibly suspicious; after about a year as a human, Kohaku hadn't really noticed any change in his physical, human form.

Research told him that he should have matured physically during these years, it was when human males usually had their growth spurts, but he, the river god who'd traded immortal life in the spirit world for a mortal, human life, never seemed to change. Luckily, Chihiro never cared to notice, or say anything, anyway, and Kohaku had caught on quickly, and set his form to age, as he'd done so in the spirit world to keep up with Chihiro before he had been able to come back to her.

However, this still left a strange feeling in him; he had traded immortality, and consequently, his eternal youth to live in this world. But maybe, as he had thought about it over the years, it had come back with all of his powers.

It would have been nice if Zeniba had warned him of his immortality's return, though he knew it was unfair to think this; that spell had been a rare one, of which little was known, even by a spirit so wise as Zeniba. She had said herself, that Kohaku's case marked a new chapter in the records of this spell.

Finding this out about his returning agelessness had startled him. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but he'd heard things back in the spirit world, that a romance between a mortal and an immortal could never last. Even if it survived the strenuous differences between worlds and cultures, the mortal was sure to eventually die, leaving the immortal alone to continue their own timeless life.

As for the differences in culture, Kohaku couldn't really care less; though it was true that the human world was blaringly different than the World of the Spirits, he found his new world more fascinating to him than anything.

But he, Kohaku, was some sort of special case. He was supposed to be a human, by what Zeniba's spell had dictated, but he seemed to have regained all the magic and uncanny abilities of his river spirit self once his love with Chihiro had won over the spell that had been cast. He could transform into a dragon, and all his powers resided in him once more, as if he'd never been a plain human in the first place.

But was he human? Would he, in sixty years or so, perish too, if only to be released into his complete spirit self, as if he had a second life, or would it be over for him? He suddenly wished there was so much more written on that one spell that had given him this life, he wished he wasn't the first spirit-human to have ever gone through this. If anything, he just wished that there was some sort of 'what-if' section to the spell's recordings, which would provide hypothetical answers to hypothetical questions to the hypothetical experience that was his life.

If only life were that simple. Neither the life of a human, nor a spirit was easy, and it was obvious to Kohaku that, when you mix the two life-forces, things become even more confusing.

It was quite obvious why the dragon was being kept up that night. Too much was there to think about, too much that he could not begin to fathom, much to his dismay. He was always a smart one, and that was one thing that Yubaba had used him for. He got top grades in the human high schools, and he caught the German language with ease so incredible he had to feign making mistakes every now and then just to appear human.

Kohaku was very smart. But all this…stuff, that was buzzing in his brain puzzled him, he didn't know what to make of it.

He lowered his hands with a sigh, leaning his dark haired head against the inside of the window, watching the little town in its silence. Maybe when he got home the next day, things would be a little better to deal with, he could relax. He never dreamed he'd be so homesick of that modest little studio apartment that he'd been living in for the past three years. Not to mention their friends back home, both he and Chihiro were eager to see them again.

Jade eyes wandered back to the bed, finding that Chihiro had shifted somewhere while he was in the middle of his thoughts. Sprawled out now on her back, her face was just visible to his keen eyes. She still had that angelic look to her face, but the round face he'd remembered her as having when she was ten had been matured to what he saw as perfection. Her complexion had remained light over the years, and it suited her well. Sometimes she even still had a splash of rose on her face, remnants of the rosy cheeks she had when she was young. When Kohaku did the right things, made the right move on her, he could bring out that rose color, and he loved doing it. He could still make her blush.

Kohaku smiled over at the sleeping girl, and figured, with an uncertain sigh, that he'd be wise to get sleep while he still could. Not even to mention, this would be the last time, for a while, at least, that he'd be able to share himself with Chihiro in these circumstances; for tomorrow it would be back on the plane to Japan, and back to her family with Chihiro. Which was more than fair, but it still remained a fact that he and Chihiro had spent several nights over the last five months like this, and had grown quite accustomed to it. They had grown so much since that first official meeting in the Spirit World, and with the years came a deep connection of their souls. Going back to an empty bed would be an arduous adjustment, even with Kohaku's newfound nervousness about being alone like this with her.

He'd have to trust himself, if at least for this one night.

He pushed himself out of the cushioned chair by the window, and made back to the bed, treading carefully, as nearly all the floorboards creaked in the old building. Her scent met him as he stood over her, and nearly overpowered his keen senses. This was what he was fretting over, his body trying to take over. It wasn't Chihiro's fault, but she was just far too attractive to him! Not to mention the fact that he was a dragon; that left him with more animal instincts than there would be in the average human male.

He sighed inwardly, and laid himself out, on top of the comfortable fleece covering. He settled in close, as the bed was only meant for one occupant to begin with, and turned his face towards hers, taking in what he saw.

Lashes just grazed her cheeks; bangs just grazed her forehead, long enough to reach her eyebrows. Those bangs had been mussed in whatever absent turning she'd done, and stuck up in places, rather cutely. Side bangs had scrawled themselves over her face, concealing some of her behind the strands, and Kohaku took it on himself to relieve her face of the problem, lest it bother her, and of course, because it was obstructing his over all view of her face. Mouth slightly open, she took in calm breaths.

Kohaku reached an arm around to her waist, and pulled her, just barely, into him. She responded to his warmth, if only in her sleep, by turning on her side and facing him, her head nestling in perfectly under his strong chin. Kohaku rested his eyes and stroked some hair that his fingers had found.

Breathing in, he found that he didn't even need a blanket to cover him in this arrangement; Chihiro provided more than enough warmth, and he smiled at the thought that this warmth she had to offer was only ever given to him.

He cherished this moment, for it would likely be a time before such a time would come again. For in this moment, he was truly happy.

**-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: **There ya have it, my sequel hath been commenced! The dorm is actually (but to an extent) inspired by the dorm me and my best friend stayed in for five days when we were in Prague( which is actually in the Czech Republic, but anyway)…It was such a very old building, with communal bathrooms and showers, five-inch thick mattresses, and a crazy mini-fridge that made demonic noises every 45 minutes or so. It probably wasn't the best type of place and I wouldn't want to stay there for more than five days, but still, Me and addie had our fun. Haku and Chihiro's dorm is a lot better of a condition than me and my friend's room, but I still made it old and slightly dilapidated in honor of that dorm we stayed in. **Long live room 213!!!** Good times. Good times…


	2. Dreams and Dragon Games

**-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: **Whoa, only three reviews so far? I'm saddened… Must be a slow week for the Spirited Away section, or something…Well, here's the next chapter to work with, it includes a good chunk of ChiHaku fluffiness. .:worships teh fluff:. And, a little advertising for my own good, if anyone in here's a fan of the anime Oban Star Racers, I am madly at work at a Molly/Aikka fanfic, so, check it out if you got time and like my stuff!

Thank you to BlackWolf'sShadow, Mew Sakuranbo, and ichigo-2007 for your reviews! hope you like the story!

Disclaimer: Yeah, I wish I was good enough to have thought of Spirited Away…But I didn't!!

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**Chapter 2- Dreams and Dragon Games**

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Everything had been fine just moments ago. Everything was changing, though. Things always changed, the world constantly changed, that was a fact of life.

Changes are not always easy to take, though. Some changes were just too drastic to go by so easily.

And sometimes, the changes of the worlds could take your life. That's a risk every being takes, simply by existing; that something could change, and the next day you wouldn't exist.

Kohaku could barely see anything, but he could see figures. Human figures, looming above him, like towers. It wasn't that he was afraid, per se, he had seen humans before. But the ones that were looming behind this watery veil, they left him unsettled. But as always, time passed, and they left.

But they had returned. And suddenly things were changing.

He felt things in his river, unnatural things. Things that shouldn't have any right to his waters. Mechanical things.

The flow of his river slowed, it was gradual, but Kohaku knew all that occurred in his river. Something was stopping the flow, from its start, a lake that was distant from where he now sat in the water. Upstream. What was happening?

This feeling, it felt as if someone was choking him of life. Which was what it was. The water was his life. The river was the reason he existed.

What was worse, the creatures that called his river home were beginning to flee. The water nymphs that occasionally played with him in his river were disappearing. Something was wrong; this choke hold on his river was ridding him of life, both his and his companions.

But unlike his friends, he couldn't escape. He was bound to this river. He could not leave it, and it was beginning to become scarce.

When he thought that this choking feeling couldn't get any worse, like it always did, it got worse. Water was becoming scarce even in this proud river. Kohaku felt weak. He felt so weak.

Things were coming to this river, even more mechanical things. Kohaku could hear their heinous engines through the water. He could feel their wheels tear the dirt apart around him.

Kohaku was weak, even more by the day. The drain of his river was taking the greatest toll on him yet. He suddenly felt like he was drowning, suffocating, really.

Suffocating, slowly. Dirt poured into the crack in the land that was once his proud river. It poured on top of him. Crushing him. Those humans, he could see through eyes that were no longer hazed by water around him, but hazed by something else.

There was no water around him. It was gone. Everything was gone. Death was all around him. Beings dependent on that water unlucky enough to have stayed behind were dying.

Kohaku was dying. Being crushed. Suffocating. Pressure was all around him. He couldn't move. The humans had immobilized him, a great and old river spirit. Fate was a funny thing, making such an unlikely victor take his life.

He was defeated, lying at the bed of his river. Gasping for air, trying to hang on. He wanted to stay. He wanted to stay!

This was his home! Where would he go if he lost it?

No air, he couldn't get any air. When he inhaled, nothing happened. Dirt, suffocation, death; they were closing in so terrifyingly close to him, pressing in from all sides, to collapse him.

The dragon gasped time and time again. When he inhaled, nothing happened. Time and time again. Gasping for air that didn't exist.

When he shut his eyes, everything went dark. Everything was gone. Everything had changed.

One more gasp, just for good measure. One last gasp, just to try.

All he could do was try.

So he tried.

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Kohaku woke with a gasp, thrusting himself out of his nest in the bed, his emerald eyes wide with terror. The arms that were supporting him above the mattress quivered. He suddenly found air hard to come by, and inwardly panicked.

'No, not again…' he told himself, shutting his eyes and touching his neck, as if it had just been released from a dangerous chokehold. 'No. It's just a dream. That's all.' He began to calm down, but still gasped for air that still felt like evading him, repeating silently those three words; it was a dream.

He let his hands fall, and felt himself slightly sticky with a thin layer of cold sweat. Kohaku sighed as soon as he controlled his breathing to a normal pace, and took notice of his surroundings finally. He saw that Chihiro was not in the bed with him, and at the same time, noticed that the light in the room was that of early morning sunlight. The fleece blanket had been folded over onto him, obviously Chihiro's doing. But how unusual, for her to be the early riser, he thought with a smile.

He quickly peered around the room, glad to see that she hadn't been there to witness his awakening. His senses picked up the sound of toothbrush bristles doing what they did best, behind the cracked door of his bathroom. Along with a gentle humming of a tune.

Kohaku calmed at Chihiro's soft voice, and pulled himself out of the bed, resting his feet flat on the floor, facing away from that door. He didn't want Chihiro to see him like this; he was supposed to be strong, he was her guardian. But that dream…

It had felt so real. He had felt every strain on his being all over again. It'd been years since that had actually happened, but it felt far too fresh, like it was actually tearing him apart all over again. Why had it shown up now?

He wiped his hand across his face, hoping to relieve it of any cold sweat, and resolved himself to look at his companion with eyes that would hold none of the anxiety the nightmare had brought about

The sound of running water met his ears, signaling that Chihiro was wrapping up her job of brushing her teeth, and would soon be out again. He leaned back, and willed himself to put away the dream, if only for now. It was only a dream, he told himself. Some sort of blessing in that event so long ago was that it couldn't happen to him again. Some sort of twisted blessing.

"Haku, are you ok?" Chihiro came out of the bathroom, a wet washcloth in her hands as she dabbed her face. "I thought I heard something out here…" She looked at him uncertainly. It was always he who woke early, and today, she'd awoken to find him still lying in slumber. He'd been sleeping so heavily, and almost looked a little pained. And she could have sworn, that when she was still in the middle of brushing her teeth, she'd heard him wake with a gasp.

Kohaku gave her an assuring smile as he turned to see her. "Yes, Chihiro, everything is fine." He lifted himself off the bed. "I just had a bad dream. It's nothing of concern."

Chihiro looked at him for a second, but apparently bought it, and allowed herself a tired smile. One thing about her rare earliness in waking up was that she was only half asleep when it happened. She wasn't a morning person, that was for sure. Kohaku, meanwhile, felt renewed, looking at the cute way she scrubbed at her face in a half-awake manner. She was still in her pajamas, as her clothes were in her own dorm room just next door. She looked so cute that way to him, in those human clothes; green flannel pants, and a black spaghetti strap top, rubbing at her eyes for any left over sleep, and chestnut hair flying in several different directions at once.

Without thinking, he peeled off his T-shirt, preparing to get himself dressed. He bent over to the suitcase next to his bed that was all packed and with the day's outfit folded on top of it, and grabbed that outfit. Standing up and turning for the bathroom, he noticed Chihiro was still there, looking at him. Or, rather, looking at his bare torso. He grinned at the sight of the pink playing across her cheeks. She'd seen him in this particular arrangement before, but she still blushed at the sight, he thought with a laugh.

Chihiro snapped back at his chuckle, and gave him a nervous smile. She found his eyes, and found that they were approaching her. Had she cared to notice, Kohaku's clothes, newly obtained, were now deposited in a heap from whence they came.

"Little One, you shouldn't stare." Kohaku scolded playfully, wrapping a toned arm around the girl. His voice turned a little husky, "And if you want something, all you must do is ask,"

Chihiro's cheeks sank into a deeper red, much to Kohaku's enjoyment. He'd read her so well, she knew. And now she knew herself that he was having his own fun in seeing just how much he could make her blush; it had become a frequent game that the dragon played.

Enthralled with his choice of entertainment, Kohaku leaned in, taking Chihiro's lips, pressing tenderly onto them, while pulling her in by her waist. His fingers enjoyed the soft texture of her flannel pants, but even more so the softness of her skin as his other hand tipped her chin up to his. Chihiro couldn't resist and kissed him back avidly, tossing the wash cloth still in her hand to the floor and wrapping her arms around her dragon.

Earning a little gasp from her, Kohaku swept her up into his arms, and carried her the short distance to the bed. They still had a good amount of time before they had to report in the lobby with their things, and he was going to take advantage of that.

Their tender kisses soon turned hot and heavy as Chihiro was laid out on the bed, Kohaku leaning over her. His hands roamed freely over her, caressing up her sides, cupping around the back of her shoulders and pulling her into his bare chest. Chihiro smiled into his lips as her own hands held on to his back, feeling the river spirit's soft skin. She loved these little exchanges between them, the dragon always seemed to understand exactly what she wanted, and gave her just that, while keeping that honorable modesty about him. He'd never gone too far, nor had he tried. He was a creature of unpretentious moderation.

He pulled away to see his progress in the color on her cheeks, and found them almost two shades pinker. The corner of his mouth turned upward in a grin, his emerald eyes meeting her hazel ones with a look of mischief; he knew he could do better. And so, set on his goal, Kohaku moved back in, this time planting kiss after kiss on her soft, curving jawline, and down her neck. He paid special, indisputable attention to each touch as he moved on across the top of her torso. He felt her shudder beneath him, and nearly did so himself. He'd never noticed how low cut this top was, how much silky skin was just under his lips.

He decided to include his hands in this seduction now, and skimmed them again down her slender figure, until he found the place where the smooth texture of her shirt changed to the soft, fluffy feeling of her flannel pants. He found a place in the crook of her neck and lingered on it, as he slid his hands up and under the sides of her shirt. Chihiro felt, on top of his hands touching her bare sides, a line of teeth just gently grazing over the curve of her shoulder, sending a new and pleasant sensation through her skin, and let out a gasp.

Kohaku pulled back as he ended his trail across her, and gave her another mischievous grin. This was a new technique he was trying, and it had gotten just the reaction he'd wanted; another shade of deeper pink, and even a change in her breathing, a quickened heartbeat. He found her eyes dazzling at him, as if asking what else he had up his sleeve.

With another flash of his emerald eyes, he leant down again, finding the place where her collarbone and neck joined, and licked the dip the junction formed just lightly before kissing the place. With a trail back up the front of her neck, his journey ended at her lips again, and the two mingled eagerly, enjoying each other's tastes for what had to be at least the thousandth time. They stayed like this for a while, neither wanted to break this off; they were both enthralled in each other.

As much as he wanted to continue, Kohaku broke away with a slight gasp, his lips still throbbing for more. It was nearing time to depart, and no matter how hard he could ever wish, river gods had no power to control time. He took a little entertainment in the separation, though, as he sensed Chihiro follow him with her lips, disappointed that his own had left her; he could easily turn this into a tease. And so, resolved in his new game, Kohaku flung himself up onto his knees on the bed, and looked at his love with those gorgeous eyes.

"That's all for now, Little One," he told her matter-of-factly, giving her a smile. Chihiro propped herself up on her elbows and gave a grimace. "Don't look at me like that, we have to get ready. And I will remind you that you're still in your sleeping things?" Kohaku suggested, his eyes glinting playfully at her clothes.

Chihiro said nothing, but simply sat up herself and pulled him in by the back of the neck, kissing him hard. As soon as she felt his playful resistance fade beneath her hands, they sank from under his hair to rest on his chest. Kohaku clasped his hands over hers and their kissing became tender again.

Again, Kohaku was the one to break things up, and he backed off the bed, his hands remaining on hers.

"Come on, you should get back into your room before I seal off our little door without you," Kohaku said to the girl he was gently dragging off the bed, helping her as she found sure footing on the ground. "I need to seal it off soon, as you remember it takes a little time."

Chihiro looked at him, and nodded. Gathering her things, that is to say, her toothbrush, the only thing she brought with her in nights with Kohaku, she recalled the spell he'd cast on the wall separating their dorm rooms. Five months ago, it had taken a little while for Kohaku to figure out just how to make it possible to come and go between the rooms as they pleased, without causing questions to arise from people who'd see them passing in the halls to the other's room for the night. He thought of simply creating a whole new doorway, but knew, if he had guests other than she, a door between dorms, exclusive to just theirs, no less, would look suspicious. And they didn't want rumors of a possible affair, nor of Kohaku's powers spreading around, lest they reach the ears of Chihiro's parents, to say nothing of the fact that such exchanges were against the rules of the transfer program.

They'd agreed on a different spell, one that didn't form an actual doorway, one that didn't give itself away in visibility. Though it took a little while for Kohaku to recall the spell completely, as it was one of some difficulty, they'd been rewarded with a perfect doorway for their purposes.

"Ready?" Kohaku said from just beside Chihiro, while she stood, staring at the plaster wall that spread before her. "I'm going to seal it just after you leave, so go out through your door if you need me." He informed her, touching her back lightly, recalling his new game of teasing his human. Moving her collection of hair aside, he grazed his lips over the exposed back of her neck, taking delight in the shiver he felt in her, the little smile that he sensed on her lips. "See you on the other side, Little One."

Chihiro lifted a hand, placing it on the wall, assuredly. Though solid and unmoving as it looked, it gave her the delightful sensation of placing her hand on the surface of a vibrant river, and the plaster rippled slightly to her touch. But Kohaku was still behind her, trailing kisses over the back of her shoulders. She knew what he was doing, and it was just like him, a dragon, to play like this. Well, two could play at that game!

She suddenly whirled around, and grabbed a collection of cottony fabric that was his unbuttoned shirt-which he'd gotten into since they'd last departed each other- and pulled him to her, almost making his perfect exterior appearance to falter as he gave a slight stumble. She pressed her whole body into him, as if trying to combine with him, all the while kissing him hotly, her tongue taking its liberty on his mouth. She tugged him forward, until she felt the cool river water of the wall grazing her back.

With one last plunge into his mouth, she pressed herself completely into him, in such a way that would possibly outrage her parents, had they been there to say anything about it. Such a way that would surely affect the teasing dragon, surely end up turning the tables on his little game. Before he had the chance to really respond, Chihiro disappeared.

All Kohaku saw of her disappearance were a glint of hazel eyes and rippling white. He had nearly fallen forward, but the dragon's impeccable balance had saved him from stumbling into her room. For once, he cursed that perfect balance. However, he couldn't help that now, there were more intriguing things on his mind. Chihiro had definitely proven a formidable opponent in his new game; he wondered if she knew just how much she affected her when she surprised him…in such ways. What's more, he thought with a blush, he wondered if she'd _felt_ how she was affecting him, he was embarrassed at how obvious it was becoming.

He gave a grimace, admiring his human love for her tenacity and cunning, he was training her rather well; he could easily see her surviving even Yubaba's most powerful trickery. He set his palm on the water-like quality of the wall before him, and focused his entire aura on removing its magical qualities as a secret door.

As soon as he would meet her in the hallway, he knew the game would continue. And he knew that now, he wasn't the only player.


	3. A Particularly Unnatural Flight

**-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: **Wow, I haven't updated this in a little while! It's actually not getting as many reviews as I thought it would…Well, I suppose it's still young .:shrugs:. I'm just on a Spirited Away high right now from watching the movie! I was watching it on Cartoon Network, but something went wrong and the signal was lost…right smack in the middle of the part where Chihiro gives Haku his real name back!! Ooh, I was flustered…So I just switched on my DVD and am presently watching in Japanese! .:sighs in relief:. Baka Cartoon Network….:glares:.

Oh, yes, so this chapter we'll be seeing a bit more of that darkness I was talking about earlier. Bit of craziness, bit of blood…you hath been warned, lol… but it's pretty much set up for the plot, so it is important:) Keep that in mind, and know that pretty much everything happens for a reason. .:shifty eyes:.

Reviewers!!

Struggling Artist: .:glomps:. So happy to see you around here again! I understand, school can be a pain. I'll actually be looking for a job as soon as I get my diploma(finally) so that will be taking me away as well. .:pokes:. Have you looked at my Oban story yet? It's mainly why I've been neglecting this story…along with lack of reviews… .:pokes:. X3

Tsukasa-Magic: Aww, thank you! X3 I love writing big fluffy masses of romance as much as I do reading them so I'm glad they go appreciated:D Anyway, here in this chapter is the first sightings of plot, enjoy! X3 Hope to hear more from you! .:huggles:.

Mew Sakuranbo: Oh, it could be way worse in the way of suggestiveness….:grins evilly:. But that's an entirely different matter, lol…And yep, dragons are so much fun like that X3

Chilliepeppers: Thank you! I'm glad you like their little chemistry :) Totally fits them, 'specially Haku X3

A13Van: Hey there! Glad you like this story as well! .:huggles:.

BlackWolf'sShadow: Kyah, thank you! .:bows:. Here's the next part, hope you like!

Dark chocolate princess: Glad you like! Sorry the update took a while, .:sweatdrops:.

Review, people! I love reviews! They make the fanfic author's world go round! X3

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**Chapter 3- A Particularly Unnatural Flight**

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"Chihiro, Haku!" a voice called to the couple in the airport as everyone who came from Japan on the program-which was only about ten people, even from different schools than Chihiro and Kohaku's- stood in a spacious wing of the vast Munich airport, waiting with their bags for their flight.

"Julia!" Chihiro beamed as she was practically tackled with a huge hug from a girl they'd come to call a friend in the last five months.

"Chihiro and Haku, I will miss you!" the girl told them proudly, and in heavily accented Japanese. Chihiro and Kohaku both smiled at their friend, taking pride in having taught her a good amount of Japanese over their time spent in her school. This girl was very different from the teenagers they both knew in Japan, as she had red hair that hung in waves to her elbows, and freckles spread across her face just below a pair of reflective glasses.

Luckily, this girl was also into mythology, which fit quite comfortably with Chihiro and Kohaku's own backgrounds. Japanese mythology and theology was actually one of her favorite things to read about, and thus had led her to Kohaku and Chihiro, the Japanese exchange students, to begin with. The past five months had been enjoyable with her as their self-appointed guide.

Julia began routing around in the bag that hung at her hip through the several books of manga that Chihiro and Kohaku could see, and drew out a small pad of paper that was lightly decorated with a Chinese dragon, as both the Japanese students were proud to see, and a pen.

"You are going to write to me," Julia stated as she scribbled something onto the paper pad. "This is my e-mail address, Chihiro. You will write to me when you get home, yes?"

Chihiro gave a great smile as she accepted the piece of paper. "Naturlich, Julia-chan" She very carefully folded the sheet and stuck it in the pocket of her jean jacket. Upon assuring that it was safe, she pulled her German friend back into a hug. ((AN-Naturlich means 'of course'))

Pulling out, Julia looked to Kohaku.

"Does Haku have a computer?" she asked uncertainly, almost ready to write her email down again. Kohaku shook his head with a little smile.

"No, but I will give my input to Chihiro," he suggested. Julia smiled and then turned a hug on him, as the sound of the exchange's supervisor rang out.

"Alright, everyone, let's move, get your tickets ready!" his voice declared over the noise of excited student buzz. Everyone, it seemed, was quite ready to return to Japan.

"Oh, I will miss you two!" Julia pulled Chihiro into the hug as well, and the friends held each other for the last time in what they knew would be a long while.

"I'll write all the time, ok?" Chihiro smiled into the triple hug, reluctantly, they all turned out of the embrace, turning to follow their supervisor, with Julia tagging along as long as she could.

"Yes, and we will meet again," Julia said certainly as the two walked off, digging their tickets out of their pockets and waving to their German friend.

With her large, honey brown eyes, Julia followed the couple through the ticket line, and out of sight in the tunnel connecting the plane itself to the building. Folding her arms across her chest and allowing a grin, she stared at the Japanese airline.

"We will meet again," she emphasized to herself in a haze of well wishers around her that also had acquaintances boarding this plane. She shut her eyes, and, earning a glint from the glass lenses, stole the spectacles from her face. Her eyes opened again, this time revealing themselves as a brilliant amber color, her pupils as vertical slits, a perfectly pitch black against the gold irises, and adjusting in size to the light.

"Sooner than you know." She said in something that could be considered a purr as the last of the passengers passed into the doorway-shaped tunnel before the guards shut the door.

As the crowd of people who had bidden their friends and family onto the Japan-bound plane milled around and dispersed, Julia's smile did not fade. She turned around and walked without opposition through the sea of people, before literally disappearing into them.

---

Kohaku could have sworn he felt a presence just now, as he stretched to secure his bag into the upper compartments above the aisle. He had not the time to pause in his actions to further ponder it, though, there was still a line of people awaiting passage through the aisle he was unpretentiously clogging. These ridiculously narrow aisles.

Murmuring his apologies to those closest to him as he latched the compartment above him shut, he sat down with a heavy sigh. He had to lean to his right, for to his left, both people and bags were marching past him in the aisles, and some of those mentioned bags were making good attempts at hitting the already stressed river spirit. Chihiro gave him a sympathetic smile from next to him.

"I told you that you didn't have to take the aisle seat," Chihiro told her companion, turning a page in her reading, a manga from a German bookstore that she'd only bought for the souvenir purposes and to see if the few years of German had paid off enough to benefit her reading ventures.

So far, it had been mostly fruitless, in the way of understanding the plot, but the artwork proved to be quite good, just about enough to keep her from lamenting over not being able to read the thing in the first place.

Over the past three years, Chihiro had indeed developed her eye for art, and found that she had a well of inspiration for herself. She had honed her skills, and was now quite confident in them. Kohaku had, many a time, told her that she should go to art school and put her talent to use. She had always thought, even with what talent she had, that she wasn't good enough to get to that level, and had used the amount of school time as an excuse, that she'd wait and see if anything else would click.

Sometimes her father had even said that art wasn't exactly the greatest way to get along in the world; it was highly competitive, and freelance fine art usually didn't get too widely represented. Still, Chihiro recalled, it was the only thing that she felt truly confident in, even if she did have her doubts in her individual abilities.

"It doesn't matter where I sit, airplanes are no way to travel," Kohaku mumbled quietly to her. "How long does this flight take?" he then asked her, a slight hint of desperation in his voice.

"About five to six hours," Chihiro told him, giving him a peck on the cheek to help the information be less hard on him. He squirmed a little as the last of the people needing to get past their row did so.

"Six hours, and I'm already losing my mind." Kohaku muttered, his emeralds glinting around at their menial surroundings; the coach class provided little luxury, it was overcrowded, the seats sat too close together as well as the rows themselves being to close together; if one person needed out for some reason, everyone that sat between them and the nearest aisle had to get up. The aisles, as mentioned, were far too narrow for their set purpose. It was nearly impossible to get past another person if you were unlucky to get up at the same time as them. Kohaku had only been in the bathroom once on the flight before, but he recalled that it didn't even deserve to be called a room; more like a broom closet with water fixtures.

"But it's strange," Kohaku murmured, just loud enough for Chihiro to hear him. She set her manga gently on her lap and turned all of her attention to her dragon. "Just now, it was also like…I sensed something. Like a presence of some sort. It was just for a split second, but…" He trailed off, green eyes wondering and holding glints of thoughtfulness.

"You mean, like something from Our Place?" Chihiro asked in a hushed tone, using the term they'd come to associate with the spirit world.

Kohaku nodded slowly. "Yes. I –"

Kohaku was interrupted by the cheerful bell above their heads, and found the 'fasten seatbelts' sign to be lit. Chihiro immediately followed these directions as the captain came over the intercom, giving the routine take-off speech. Kohaku fastened his own, full of apprehension. He could feel the deep hum of the engines growing louder, and just as his belt clicked into place, a slight lurch of the large wheels outside and below the plane.

He hated this, so much. There was just too much technology, and its voice was near deafening at times when they were above the Earth. He was too far from the elements in this place, with its thick and metal walls. The air tasted stale to him already in this cabin; he could hear the vents that filtered and re-filtered that air.

The large passenger-carrying machine began its venture to the runway, and Kohaku saw outside the window, the concrete below them racing by until they stopped to wait in line for the runway.

Chihiro lifted the armrest that was separating the two of them, and leaned into Kohaku, taking his hands into hers. She knew, Kohaku the dragon would much rather be flying the way nature intended him to. If there was anything that Kohaku hated about the human world, it was definitely the airplane. She couldn't blame him; even she somehow found that flying the human way was a little disturbing. She couldn't attribute this to anything _but_ her experience with flying on a dragon; her dragon, Kohaku.

Kohaku calmed a little at her touch, but still felt himself squirming, as if his body was threatening to turn itself into a dragon. It would get a little better, once they leveled out in the air. He'd still hate flying this way, but the lurching of the plane trying to even itself out after take off would be over soon. Their transport was now hurtling down the runway now, concrete flying by the window.

Kohaku simply closed his eyes and willed himself to keep a hold on his frantic self. He focused himself on Chihiro who was next to him, doing her best to keep him comfortable, squeezing his hands every now and then, if only to assure him that she was still there.

That sense of weightlessness came through the couple as the plane lifted itself into the air, and Kohaku tightened his figurative grip on himself. There was no telling what he might do if he truly did lose it, he could possibly turn into a dragon, or worse, inadvertently cause a problem with the plane; spirits had been known to do that to human objects, and there was no way he was going to do either of these things. He was holding himself to this.

"Deep breaths, Kohaku," Chihiro's voice whispered to him a she pressed into him in a hug. He almost immediately calmed with this movement, and sank into her hold, letting her be his guardian for once. He felt her hands gently stroke his dark hair, and smiled into her shoulder. Chihiro was like his miracle. He now knew how she had felt when he had comforted her in the other world. No wonder it seemed that she'd fallen in love with him when he'd first held her like this; he just fell in love with her all over again.

Somehow, perhaps with some possible divine power of the Gods, Kohaku fell asleep in the terrible human plane, in the arms of the human girl Chihiro.

---

Kohaku woke some hours later, and found the cabin darkened; it was obviously 'night', or the plane-simulated version of it. He lifted himself out of Chihiro's grasp-she'd also somehow fallen asleep- and peered around before all the things about this unnatural flight assaulted him again. He harnessed himself quickly, and tried to contemplate what his dream had been about. It seemed like he should remember it, but for the life of him, he couldn't.

Kohaku pulled both of their pillows from the floor and settled them under Chihiro's head, allowing her for slightly more comfortable slumber. He grimaced at the fact that it was impossible to get any real sleep on this thing.

The plane gave a shudder from the light turbulence, and Kohaku himself gave a shudder of his own. Looking at his watch, he saw that they were only three hours through the journey. Then he realized that he'd just slept through an entire half a flight. He found it odd, but was grateful nonetheless; rather that than spending that same half a flight fretting and fidgeting and trying to keep his nature-deprived self under control.

Kohaku stared around, seeing the cabin as void of movement. He decided, for this reason, that now was an opportune moment to take a restroom break. With this decision, he levered himself out of the seat, and took to making sure Chihiro would be comfortable without him. Once assured, Kohaku began towards the back of the plane, feeling slightly odd at having not walked or really, done anything, for the past three hours, plus the lurching of the plane.

Few eyes met his own as he passed the other passengers, and Kohaku found himself in the alcove that provided entrance to the lavatories. Recalling that green meant it was alright to enter, he pulled one green labeled door open with ease, finding the broom closet-sized bathroom behind it.

With an inward groan, he pulled himself in, and looked to the sink. Already he was feeling claustrophobic in this meager facility, he thought to himself with a grimace. He turned the faucet to present him with cold, running water, while taking account of himself in the mirror and rolling up his sleeves. His eyes were lined with sleep, and you could almost tell by his eyes how stressful the unnatural flight was for him. His shirt, a simple black button-up top, was ruffled with sleep, as was his near-black hair.

He shook himself out of this lament for his loss of his usual, perfect face, and splattered that face with a collection of water. He did this again, rubbing the cold liquid into his skin, trying to give that same feeling of rejuvenation that he always received from water; but this water was as stale as the air in the cabin. For a second, he thought he heard something like a voice, but couldn't be sure; his sense of hearing would have surely been altered by his vigorous scrubbing of his face.

Kohaku lifted his wet face for a moment, lowering his hands under the running water, and let the liquid run down his face. He opened his eyes, and expected to see his own emerald gaze, but instead found something else. He used the back of his forearm to wipe away the water from his eyes, in order to get a better look.

In the mirror, was not him at all.

This teen-age looking person, instead of deep, near-black forest green hair, had a brilliant and faceted shade of crimson to her hair, a slightly pointed chin, but complexion to match his own. She didn't even seem to be wearing anything, but this fact was covered by the mist that was covering the mirror more and more. Her hair extended to a point that he couldn't determine, and her bangs seemed to favor the right side of her face, for they were longer and had more volume there. But what truly captured Kohaku's attention, was her eyes.

Her eyes were intense, focused, and every bit as piercing as his own. The only difference was, hers were the shade of blood, beneath a luxuriously heavy set of eyelashes that many girls would be jealous of. But that shade, that garnet shade of red, he'd swear he'd seen it somewhere before.

"Ai…Aikihara?" Kohaku murmured to the mismatched reflection, touching his fingertips to the glass. Without warning, the glass frosted around his touch, forming what looked to be crystals of ice, though he felt not in the least cold.

"Kohaku-nii." Aikihara's reflection whispered, even without movement from her lips. "Please," She shut her capturing eyes, and lifted a hand to the glass.

Kohaku gasped, finding that his sister's hand held blood in it, fresh blood, seeping from what looked like fresh wounds. He could read the wounds, he found, and read the kanji "Kaeru." Return home.

"Aikihara, what's happened to you, who did this?" Kohaku asked the mirror, motioning towards the cuts on her hand.

Aikihara said nothing, but her eyes suddenly snapped open, staring at nothing. Her eyes showed nothing to the human-river spirit, but the traces of blood before his eyes began to shift. No, it was the cuts themselves that were shifting, morphing over the skin of her palm with grace and ease that was almost sickening. The kanji rearranged themselves, and bled all the more profusely, meanwhile blood somehow began running down from the top of the mirror itself. Kohaku had to strain his eyes to read the wounds on his sister's hands through the blood. His heart skipped several beats as he found just what kanji it was;

"'Shikyo.' Death…To go away…" Kohaku muttered to himself. He looked for Aikihara's eyes again, finding them still focused on nothing. They were flat, listless, as his had once been, in life without Chihiro. "Aikihara, what are you telling me? What's going on? Did someone hurt you?!" Kohaku couldn't hide the shake in his voice, nor did he care enough to try. His sister, she was bleeding to death, and he couldn't get to the other side of this damned glass!

Aikihara slowly looked back up at him, through the descending curtain of blood over the glass, her face expressionless, as far as he could tell. Her hand was bleeding even more now, from those kanji, they were bleeding far too much than was logical.

Kohaku backed into the wall, which was practically at his back anyway for how small the bathroom was, watching blood pour from his sister. Now, it seemed, the blood hadn't restricted itself to those kanji, and seemed to escape her eyes like a stream of tears. Blood continued to seep from the top of the vanity, shadows seemed to sprout up on the walls, taking shape of odd little things that almost looked like creatures, and the room started to warp itself out of proportion around the River god. The light flickered above the mirror a few times before going out, the room seemed to suddenly shake beneath him. The light went out for more than a flicker's length, leaving Kohaku alone with his terrified gasps for air.

A dripping sound met his ears, and Kohaku directed himself to where he knew the mirror was. He reached out, calling for his sister.

"Aikihara…Where are you? What are you trying to tell me?" Kohaku asked firmly, trying to play the confident one in a situation that he clearly wasn't ready for.

"Nii-san." Her voice finally came, but it had become distant, almost icy.

"Aikihara, tell me what's going on." Kohaku demanded of the darkness, receiving another flicker of the lights as his hand finally found the smooth surface of the mirror, finding a warm, fluid attribute to it as well.

"Du bist zu spat, Kohaku" a new, feminine and amused voice sounded, and it seemed to have presence more in his mind than anything. ((Du bist zu spat—You are too late))

Kohaku pressed his hands through the darkness onto the mirror, as if he could push his way through to get to his sister. Why was this new voice here, and why was it suddenly speaking German? More importantly, what had this person possibly done to his sister?

"What have you done to her!?" Kohaku shouted through the bloodstained mirror in his near-fluent German. "Who are you!?"

"The great and powerful Nigihayami Kohaku Nushi cannot even save his own sister," the voice said scathingly, and with a mocking laugh. "How pathetic. How do you even expect to protect your filthy little human if you can't even keep your sister safe? Do you really expect her to be safe with you?"

The lights suddenly flickered again, this time staying on, and Kohaku found himself with his hands still pressed against the bloody mirror. He drew them back to him, and found them, unsurprisingly, covered in crimson. He stared at his hands, then to the mirror, finding that there was no longer any Aikihara, even behind the blood. Looking down to his hands again, his breath not slowing any, he caught the blood in the act of rearranging itself into kanji.

This newest of kanji was the kanji 'shini.'

"True intentions?" Kohaku read. His breath kept catching in his throat, as he glanced around the tiny broom closet of a bathroom. What were these kanji, what was his sister trying to tell him? Aikihara was in danger, that much he did know. And this new, German speaking voice, though it was strange, it somehow sounded terrifyingly familiar. And Chihiro…

"She threatened Chihiro…" Kohaku growled to no one, blood seeped still from the mirror, even beginning to soak the ground in red. "She's hurt Aikihara and she's threatened Chihiro. Who the Hell would do this to them!? To me!?" Kohaku raged, before sending a fist through the mirror, letting his blood mix with the blood that was already shed.

"Temper, temper, Kohaku," the cool and collected German voice sounded again, though this time it sounded distant, as if it had left the bathroom without him. Kohaku shot out the door, half expecting there to be flight attendants waiting for him, either worried or enraged over his outbursts in the little bathroom. But there was no one.

The plane seemed silent, and eerily so. Kohaku decided promptly that he should get to Chihiro, before whatever this person was got there first. And so he sped out of the little alcove of restrooms, and proceeded down the aisle, only to find something else, only adding on to the disturbance he was feeling.

All around him, each and every seat that had been occupied with a German or Japanese human, was now occupied by completely different creatures; those of the bath house. Aburaya's frog and slug workers all seemed to be sitting here in this cabin.

And they were all dead in their seats.

Kohaku stumbled back a bit, the stench of blood hitting his nostrils. His green eyes noted that blood indeed was all around, the source of it was obviously the Aburaya staff. Kohaku ran through the aisle to the row where he and Chihiro had been seated, but found nothing there. No trace of her, amongst a sea of slaughtered bath house workers, and not to mention his sister was in danger, possibly dead; what was the meaning of it all!?

Kohaku turned to a sudden tap on the shoulder, finding himself face-to-face with a very odd looking Lin, still in her salmon work clothes, a mop clutched in her hand. Blood trickled from her own hair, places on her torso, and from under her sleeves. She stood in a puddle of her own blood as she glared at him listlessly.

"Lin…What is going on?" Kohaku asked her desperately, and coming a step closer. "Tell me this is a dream!"

Before he could take half a step, though, Lin set her mop in front of her defensively, as if it were a staff and Kohaku was declaring battle on her. Before he could question her, though, there was a collective sound of a groan, and through the dimly lit cabin, the frog and slug workers began to rise, each bleeding badly as Lin and stared toward Kohaku, almost hungrily.

"Lin, answer me." Kohaku tried his 'friend' again. Lin replied with a heinous laugh that was not her own, and took a step towards him, the other workers following suit. He recognized something about them, it was as if they were zombies-which he'd come to know about through playing video games with Chihiro- But he could sense that they weren't that exactly; they were dead, but they were being controlled by someone… Moving to someone else's will…

"Lin, answer me, dammit!" Kohaku shouted, grabbing the 'zombie' Lin's mop and forcing her forward to look at him better. He suddenly noticed that her eyes held none of her soul, they were simply grey, and void of any pupils; definitely under someone's control. "Who the Hell is doing this?" He shouted more, not even to Lin in particular anymore.

Lin suddenly replied in a loud whisper.

"Haku, wake up!" This voice was not her own, but it was someone Kohaku was familiar to, nonetheless. "Haku, c'mon, wake up!"

As if this were some sort of cue, the frogs and slugs around him began closing in on him even more, terrible grins on their faces. Lin sounded again, in that familiar voice.

"Haku! Snap out of it!"

Kohaku suddenly saw the grins and the frogs themselves dissipate and fade into darkness, along with Lin's face.

For a few seconds, it was just him and the darkness.

---

Kohaku finally stirred, tilting his head slightly from its position on the side of the back of his seat. With a slight moan, his emerald eyes finally opened with a snap, with glints of slight panic in them. He leaned forward, taking in his surroundings, noticing his forehead was slightly cold with sweat. Everything was normal, almost exactly as he'd left it for his nap. Chihiro, however, was looking at him, pale, and worried, as if she'd seen a ghost in his eyes. He turned a nervous, but nonetheless relieved smile on her. Chihiro, though, was not convinced by the show, and gave him a scolding look.

"Haku, don't give me that look; you were having another nightmare, weren't you?" Chihiro looked at him through her brown bangs, with hazel eyes full of concern. "I could see it in your face, and you nearly mumbled something a few times. What's going on?"

Kohaku looked at his human, his true status finally divulged. With a sigh, he ran a shaky hand through his hair, that image of his bleeding sister not allowing him to forget it. That voice, too, also served in disturbing him. And then, there was the plane. His eyes suddenly became a bit steely, staring off at the back of the seat in front of him.

"I'm sorry, Chihiro, this is not the place to discuss it…" Kohaku told her bluntly, as he pulled himself from his seat. He gazed around as he turned in the aisle for the restroom alcove, finding a few eyes on him, making him wonder if he'd drawn any attention in his perturbed sleep. Walking down the clear aisle, he rigidly tied his hair back at the nape of his neck, leaving Chihiro staring over the back of her own seat, a little taken aback with his answer.

Something was going on, and even Chihiro felt it was thick in the air. She settled back into her seat and decided to loudly open and glare at a random page of the airline program magazine, as if she cared what it was telling her. The only thing the eighteen-year old cared about was what her dragon wasn't telling her.

---

Kohaku tried to bring himself to sense with a splash of that stale tap water in the restroom, but it didn't seem to be working for him. He leaned without abandon over the plastic sink in the closet of a room, rubbing and rubbing his face with that terribly processed water. In the end, his face was still wet, only with water as well as the cold sweat he'd awoken with. After about the sixth or seventh time, Kohaku couldn't differentiate which, he gave up, grasping the sides of the sink and breathing a bit heavy.

"What the Hell is happening…" He muttered to the drain, feeling a bit of bile rise up in his throat, wondering if he was perhaps going to wretch. If it provided any relief at all, he certainly welcomed it.

He felt the plane hit a slight patch of turbulence and give a controlled shudder below him. Looking without moving his wrist, he could tell that it had been a few hours into the flight. In fact, it was almost the same time he'd woken up in his nightmare.

He turned his eyes onto the mirror in front of him, almost expecting, but still dreading, to see his sister there through his green-black bangs. All he saw, though, were glaring emeralds through a haze of near-black forest green hair, set on a pale face. The shoulders framing the reflection's face rose and fell in a still-hurried pace, and Kohaku almost grimaced, thinking that this was probably the most panicked he'd ever seen himself. Though he couldn't blame himself; two terrible nightmares in less than twelve hours was not something very normal or pleasant. Seeing your only sister and your friends in that condition was nowhere near normal, even for a spirit.

He released his white-knuckled grip on the sink, and leaned back on the plastic wall that was practically at his back already, and peered up towards the halogen light that was not a comforting distance from his head.

He was absolutely losing it; this was no mere unpleasantness that came from flying so unnaturally, these nightmares were not something random. He'd been feeling as if there was something wrong for the past month, these visions could only be a part of that. Something was definitely wrong, and Kohaku was frightened and angry to think that his own sister was part of it, a victim, even. Why else had there been so much of her blood?

And the Aburaya staff, that hadn't left him any assurance. What would happen to Aikihara, and Lin? What was happening that he felt so desperately that he needed to stop?

His thoughts were interrupted by an impatient banging on the door.

"You gonna be done any time soon, buddy?" An impatient voice demanded from the other side of the plastic door, causing Kohaku, with help of the banging, to start a bit.

Scowling at how edgy he was compared to his usually stoic attitude, Kohaku grabbed a fistful of paper towel, and wiped down his face, turning the latch on the door. He leaned off to the side of the alcove, wiping his wet face down, preparing himself to meet Chihiro with a pleasantly stoic exterior. The plane gave another turbulence-induced shudder below him, and he stared off determinedly.

'I'm coming, Aikihara…' He told his sister inwardly, emerald eyes blazing before he headed down the aisle to Chihiro.

--

**-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-:** Just some miscellaneous notes; Some German stuff- as to translations throughout the story (there probably won't be too many past this one, but anyhow) I will provide translations after the paragraph they're in, just to make the flow better…In my Furuba story I translate at the end, but this has a lot more action than that story and as such needs to move better. So, item one complete.

Also, a note on Julia's name; in German, the 'J' is pronounced as a 'Y', so her name sounds like 'You-lee-uh.' Minor note taken care of.

As to the kanji I used for the whole crazy nightmare sequence, I got the kanji's names and meanings from thekanjisite-com…so that should be a reliable source.

Oh, yes, and I snuck a slight Howl's Moving Castle bit of influence in here, I wonder if anyone noticed what it was? ;)

And finally, I decided to spell Rin as Lin, seeing as how that really is her name. This goes for Chihiro's little sister, as well! Just to avoid confusion… I hope I'm not causing it! .:sweatdrops:. Basically the same as when I switched from saying No-Face to Kaonashi. Anyway, that's how it's gonna be, thought I'd make note of it!


	4. A Dragon Home, A Dragon Gone

**-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: **I know, I know, it's been too long, ne?...Wow, over a month! Jeez, I'm sorry. Been preoccupied with things in real life, my Oban story, and my Oban guild on Gaiaonline. Wish I could say I was busy with school and work, but alas, the Catgirl seems to have trouble getting hired. -.- She's very broke. Anyway, that has nothing to do with Haku and Chihiro, so rawr!

So, ze plot! She thickens!! We finally get some answers on why Haku was having crazy dreams and what it all means…Well, what some of it means. There's a little more to everything than what is revealed in this chapter.

So, onto the reviewers!

Tskuasa-magic: Well, actually, that wasn't the one I had in mind(HMC reference) but it could totally be true:D Good job on that one. The one I had in mind was actually how _'shadows seemed to sprout up on the walls, taking shape of odd little things that almost looked like creatures, and the room started to warp itself out of proportion…'_ I got that idea from when Howl has his slime-fit when his hair gets dyed the wrong color. Lol…gotta love Howl and his vanity…XD …And huzzah for German! And actually the girl in the mirror was Aikihara, Haku's sister Oo So, anyway, Thank you so much, I love your reviews, they're very supportive! .:glomps:.

StrugglingArtist: Ah, it appears it is I who is late this time around, ne? lol…Anyway, Thank you, I love your reviews and support, as always, and I still gotta get caught up on Nowhere to Go(there's an alert sitting happily in my mailbox) Oh, yeah, and now I even have another Oban fic! Lol…Hope you check them both out when you get some time X3

Mew Sakuranbo: Hee, or perhaps Trinity Blood…lately I'm all a flutter about that series and it's awesome art X3 Here's the answer to Aikihara, but Lin will come later…I think it's safe to say much later, in terms of what the Heck is going to be wrong with her :o

Manic-of-Forks: Kyaah! Thank you! I'm so glad you like! I think I may explode if you guys inflate my ego anymore! .:blushes:.

BlackWolf'sShadow: I do indeed intend to continue this story :3 It's fun to be dark every once in a while. I write so much fluffy romance…I realized this a few weeks ago, thinking on how every one of my stories is classified as 'romance' in one of the genre slots! Thanks, and here's some more plot stuff!

Prianime: Thanks so much, …wait, I don't think I've ever been called brilliant before…! .:hides behind a pillow:. You guys are too good to me! ToT .:splodes:.

--

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Chapter 4- A Dragon home, A Dragon Gone

--

---

A tense batch of hours on the plane, and a long ride on the train had eventually led Chihiro and Kohaku back to the small town they called home, and Kohaku's nightmares had not been forgotten, nor heeded any less seriously. Nor had he shared these visions with Chihiro; He saw no use in worrying her if everything turned out to be alright, and there was even less need to involve her in something if it was potentially dangerous.

Tugging their luggage behind them on the platform, the couple bid their farewells and thanks to their supervisor and their fellow students as they headed out to the town. Chihiro stood at the curb, looking around expectedly. Kohaku knew she was looking for her parent's car, waiting for it to come up and relieve them both of their hefty luggage.

"Onee-chan! There she is!" a cheery voice called out, before the patter of footsteps rushed them.

Chihiro and Kohaku both turned to see a young girl running up to them, only to tackle Chihiro nearly to the ground in a hug. Chihiro regained herself and spun herself and her sister in a circle, laughing playfully the whole time, sending the younger girl's sienna hair to whirl around them. The seven year old was set down sharply in her over-sized and untied sneakers, and grey eyes turned to meet Kohaku.

"Hakuno-nii!" She cried affectionately before tossing herself into Kohaku's arms. Kohaku allowed himself a chuckle and lifted her in the air and into his own spin. Chihiro smiled at the interaction, and noticed now an approaching troupe of her mother and Rumi and decided to throw some affection their way.

"Okaa-san! Rumi-chan!" Chihiro ran to them, her arms outstretched. Rumi immediately ran into her friend's embrace, hugging her as close to her as possible.

"Five months is too long, Baka-chi! Don't ever leave that long again!" Rumi cried into her friend's shoulder, her grip only growing tighter.

"It's alright, Rumi-chan, I'm not leaving again! At least not for a long while!" Chihiro could only laugh and return the embrace. At long last, they broke apart, getting a good look at one another.

"You look good, Chi! All that walking through Germany has done you good! You finally got some muscles on that skinny frame of yours!" Rumi teased, play-punching her friend in the shoulder.

"Oh come on, I wasn't that skinny before!" Chihiro joked, returning the punch as Kohaku joined them, Lin riding triumphantly on his back. Both girls were amused to see this, thinking immediately of how that was usually Chihiro's spot. Turning back to Rumi, Chihiro made her own observations; "Rumi, you grew out your hair! It looks great!"

"Thanks, you're not the first to think so," Rumi said proudly, sending the both of them a wink, a wink that they'd hoped would be explained later. She tossed her hair a bit, showing them its layers that proceeded to chin-length since they'd last seen her.

Chihiro nodded her approval. Her attention then turned to her mother, who looked about as brimming with excitement at the sight of her daughter as Rumi had been. They took each other up in a hug while Kohaku decided to entertain his adoptive little sister in a graceful twirl. With the laughter of Lin in the background, Chihiro noticed that there was one absent in their welcome party.

"Mom, where's daddy?" Chihiro grabbed a hold of her luggage, quite anxious to see her home again.

"Ah, he's still at home, he generously offered Rumi a seat in our car, since there's not enough room for all of us," Yuuko grinned as she set her hands on her hips. "Says he's getting things ready at home for your return." Chihiro laughed at this.

"There's a football game on today, isn't there?" She asked her mother knowingly. Football, Chihiro knew, was her father's favorite thing to do when he had no work to do. (A.N.- I mean soccer, because that's what it's actually called, least in other countries than the US)

"You got it," Yuuko winked at her daughter before turning to her younger one. "Lin-chan, time to get down now, I should think that Hakuno-san is exhausted from the trip!"

"Aw, mom, we were just having fun!" Rin whined, clutching around Kohaku's neck.

"No excuses, get down from there, he already has his luggage!" Yuuko scolded firmly. The woman then turned a smile to Kohaku as Rumi gave Lin assistance off of her 'brother's' back. "Hakuno, I hope you have time to come over for a bit, sort of a welcome home party, but only us," She suggested to him.

"I would like that," Kohaku nodded, and found Chihiro's hand with his own free one. Chihiro gave him a dazzling smile as the little family journeyed off to find the car they'd be traveling in.

He supposed a visit to his sister could wait, just a little bit longer.

---

Chihiro couldn't believe her eyes when she came home and into the front room. A long banner hung along the upper banister, reading, "Welcome Home, Chihiro and Hakuno!" With this decoration, several traditional Japanese party ornaments hung around, such as festive fans, paper lanterns, and of course, a large green dragon, also made of paper.

"Onee-chan, Onee-chan, do you like it?" Lin squeezed through the door, which was currently being blocked by her astounded older sister. "Look, look! I wrote the banner out with Rumi-nee!"

"It's awesome, Lin-chan! Your calligraphy's getting a lot better!" Chihiro beamed, leaning down to hug her seven year old sister. She had barely removed herself from the ecstatic Lin before she was swept into another hug, this one resembling more of a bear than anything.

"Here she is, my traveling Chihiro!" Her father beamed, squeezing his daughter tight.

"N-nice to see you too, daddy!" Chihiro managed. Akio released his daughter and turned to Kohaku.

"So, Hakuno, I trust you took care of my Chihiro all the way in Germany?" He slung a lazy arm over the boy, who was only just catching notice of the decorative green dragon slung along the upper railing. "Nothing happened that I'd have to punish you for, eh, boy?"

"Daddy!" Chihiro exclaimed, turning redder at this remark.

"Ha, I'm just kidding, Chihiro, relax, nothing's going to happen to your boyfriend." Akio laughed, leading Kohaku into the next room, which, coincidentally also held a television in it. "You been keeping up with the football over there, boy? Japan's been doing great!" Kohaku could only shrug and explain that he had no TV in his dorm back in Germany as he was pulled through the doorway. He gave a last smile to Chihiro and Rumi, who were laughing behind their hands at how the river god was so easily kidnapped by a football-crazed human.

"Pfft. Football on TV is so boring. Let's go outside and play for real!" Lin suggested enthusiastically to her two older sisters after a little roll of her eyes for her father's behavior.

"Right, I'm game," Rumi said, rolling up her pant legs to above the knees for something of shorts. Chihiro insisted that she go upstairs to find something other than her current skirt to wear for such an occasion, and then insisted that Rumi come with her. Lin innocently agreed, declaring that she would be in the back yard, fixing up the football goal.

"Hmm, and why do I have to come up to see my best friend get dressed? I love ya, Chi, but not like that," Rumi teased with a goofy little grin as they entered Chihiro's ever-emerald room. Chihiro responded with a look that made Rumi's smirk only deepen.

"No, that's not what I meant." Chihiro said certainly, lifting her suitcase to her emerald clad bed with a grunt. Turning and heading for her closet, she shut the door on the way there. "It's about Haku." She said this seriously, causing her friend's smirk to completely fall off her face.

"What, trouble with Haku? I didn't think that was possible…" Rumi walked over and leaned between the closet and the door, and speaking in a hushed voice. "He didn't hurt you, did he? Cause if he did, it'll be the first time in history that a teenage human girl beat the crud out of a dragon!" Rumi asked, disbelieving.

"Don't be dense; Haku isn't like that." Chihiro scolded, digging through her drawers for suitable football wear. She found what she was looking for, a pair of baggy mid-thigh jean shorts, and straightened up. "There's something going on with him. Something he's not telling me about…"

"I thought you said he wasn't like that," Rumi raised an eyebrow and blew a tendril of her lengthening blonde hair out of her face.

"No, it's not like that," Chihiro grumbled, thinking about how there were too many 'like that's' in that short span of time. She yanked on her shorts under her skirt, and with the zipper, shed her skirt and tossing it haphazardly into her hamper. "It's just…like a bad feeling I'm getting. Like something is going to happen. Haku had a nightmare last night, and I swear I heard him wake up with a gasp," Chihiro hurried to explain.

"Then on the plane, he was definitely having another one, and he came close to mumbling in his sleep. He was covered in sweat, Rumi!" She hissed, desperate to keep the discussion from Kohaku's ears. Rumi watched the panic in her friend's eyes rise a bit, with worry of her own. "When I got him to come out of it, he looked…terrified…" She sank to her bed, and her face contorted at the thought, the thought that dominated her mind that told her that to be Kohaku was to not be terrified.

Rumi came quietly and sat down on her bed next to her friend. Chihiro entwined her fingers under her chin, and peered at the first dragon she could find, thinking in futility that it would tell her of what the real one was thinking.

"You think maybe, then ,that he was having some sort of premonition?" Rumi suggested. Chihiro thought a bit and shrugged.

"Maybe. I can't be sure. I know the first nightmare he just shrugged off like it was nothing, and he seemed to forget about it right away," Chihiro recalled, thinking of how quickly things had gotten affectionate between the two after the first occurrence. "But the one on the plane, it was different. Haku looked like he was freaking out. I know he's all calm on the outside, he always is, but even then, there was all out fear in his eyes."

"And when Kohaku the river spirit is terrified, that's usually not a good sign." Rumi completed Chihiro's thoughts with a weary sigh, leaning back onto the bed on her hands. "I totally get it now."

"Yeah…" was all Chihiro could think of saying. "You… you think we should ask him about it?" she asked her friend uncertainly. Rumi tossed herself off of the support of her arms, Brown eyes full of thought.

"Probably, but I can't say he'll say anything. He really doesn't like worrying you, you know, Chi?" Chihiro nodded at this, and let out a sigh. What was she thinking, she wondered; like asking him what he'd been dreaming about would make him provide an answer? He was a dragon, and dragons always had secrets, and they guarded them as if they were tangible bits of treasure. And Rumi was right after all; Kohaku never let his troubles reach Chihiro, lest she begin to worry for his sake. Her blank face suddenly scowled a bit as she thought of this.

"Sometimes I just wish he wouldn't be so stubborn as to hide everything from me!" Chihiro grumbled, standing and crossing her arms. "I'm not a child, I can handle it! Not to mention, I think I worry _even more_ about it when he doesn't tell me a thing!"

Rumi looked at her friend affectionately.

"Chi, you are just as stubborn as that dragon and you know that!" She laughed, joining her hand with Chihiro's shoulder. "Now come on. We can corner that boy later, but we've got a football match to attend."

Chihiro nodded curtly, still turning things over in her own head, and filed out of her room after her friend, arms still crossed. Though she admitted that she'd willingly walk into the entertainment room and drag her beau out by the ear that moment if she could, she also admitted that she and her friend were expected in the backyard for a game.

Passing by said entertainment room, she caught a glimpse of her dragon, watching the television in almost mock-interest with her father. He didn't catch her throwing him a desperate look as she walked past.

---

The afternoon passed, and Chihiro, after a long flight across a continent, dealing with a stubborn dragon and possible premonitions, and now playing against her friend and sister in a game of football, was getting very exhausted. The jetlag was finally getting to her, she thought as she let out a gaping yawn while she was supposed to be guarding the goal posts. In this lapse, the ball flew straight past her and to the net behind her.

"Yeah! Score!" Lin threw her hands up in satisfaction.

"Right, nice one, Lin-chan," Rumi said, leaning on her knees to catch up with her breath. She noticed Chihiro's near-oblivious expression that signaled she only half-knew that the ball had just flown past her. "Your sister's tired though, I think that's good for today,"

"Come on, Chihiro-nee, let's get something to eat or something!" Lin tugged her tired sister from the goal and the three of them managed to saunter into the house, all of them refreshed but exhausted from the workout.

They found a pitcher of water on the table waiting for them, obviously provided by Yuuko, Chihiro's mother. After pouring themselves a glass and then each chugging down their share, the three girls let out great sighs, relieved at the iced drink's effect on their bodies. Yuuko smiled from the doorway as she was passing by, a basket of Chihiro's laundry from Germany on her hip. All three met that smile, before taking another chug of their water. Kohaku pulled himself into the room minutes later, looking back in the direction of the entertainment room, having just escaped it.

"Hey," Rumi held up a hand in a motionless wave. "How's Japan doing?"

"Ah, still winning, and the game's almost over," Kohaku told her with relief of being away from the TV. He sat down at the kotatsu table heavily, and tossed a smile at Chihiro, who returned it, albeit distractedly, the thoughts over her dragon still fresh in her mind and pestering her.

"Hakuno, what was Germany like? Was it really cool?" Lin set down her glass and went into full curious questioning mode.

"It was, Lin-chan," Kohaku replied with a chuckle. "In fact, I think you'd love it just as much as your sister and I did."

"You guys had a friend over there, right? That's what you told me in your letters," Rumi suggested behind her glass.

"Oh, Julia-chan!" Chihiro said, glad to have something else to think about before she could actually get Kohaku on his own to confront him about the dreams he was hiding. So Kohaku and Chihiro both recited their story of meeting Julia, and whatever events they had encountered together. Chihiro even ran briefly upstairs to retrieve some pictures of their new friend, and returned to find her mother in on the conversation as well.

"It sounds like you both had a great time, then, Hakuno-san," Yuuko was just saying. "It sounds like a beautiful place. I had the opportunity to go there myself on a business trip, but at the time I was expecting Chihiro."

"Please, mom, don't start telling them baby stories," Chihiro laughed embarrassedly as she came in, photos in hand.

"Whoa, she's really pretty!" Lin exclaimed, snatching one of the photographs off of the table where Chihiro was just setting them. A teenage girl with shining red hair that hung in waves around her shoulders beamed from almost every photo, though Chihiro and Kohaku noted that in every one, her eyes were either closed in her smile, or obstructed by her glinting glasses. Quite odd, but they didn't pay it any mind.

"Her eyes are really pretty, too, they're honey brown," Chihiro explained, sifting fruitlessly through all of the photos of their friend for a picture that featured those eyes. "Oh well, some people just blink involuntarily when they have their picture taken…" Chihiro shrugged and set the pile down.

"Hey Chihiro, thought you might want to see this," Akio strode into the room, a section of newspaper in his hand. "Oh, Japan won, again, by the way!" He then stated proudly, earning another roll of Lin's eyes.

"Thought I'd like to see what, dad?" Chihiro asked, eyeing the newspaper.

"Well, you said you were planning to start looking for an apartment once you graduated, I thought this might help," Akio held the paper in front of him, showing Chihiro that it was the apartment listings, that displayed available apartments in the area..

"Dear, she just got home, and you're trying to get her out of the house?" Yuuko crossed her arms, looking at her husband. "And she doesn't have to move out so soon, she's only just eighteen!"

"She's showing independence, koi, I think we should respect that! Our Chihiro is trying to be independent; it's better than some of those other lazy bums that stick with their parents 'til they're thirty!" Akio laughed. "Besides, there's a new apartment development, it'll be opening in a couple of weeks, and they'll be looking for people to buy their places! You'll have a good chance, there!" He turned excitedly towards Chihiro again.

"Huh, let me see," Chihiro said, holding her hand out for the paper while her mother kept grumbling about 'her first baby leaving the nest.'

Chihiro saw the sub-line that advertised a description of this new complex, and turned to the pages indicated. Kohaku was looking over her shoulder, and Rumi was crawling next to her in order to do the same.

Suddenly, something in Kohaku's emerald eyes shifted as he caught the apartment development in question. He gently snatched the paper from Chihiro, who hadn't had a real chance to acknowledge the article and stared after him, about to ask him about his actions, before catching an uncommon look in his eyes. Rumi caught it too, even from the other side of Chihiro, the look of pure fear that haunted those jade orbs.

"Haku…?" Rumi whispered uncertainly, leaning in front of Chihiro just slightly.

Jade eyes, full of anxiety, shifted up from the article to look at the two girls, not daring to admit that his hands were shaking.

This couldn't be happening. No, it had to be some cruel sort of joke.

He looked back at the paper, finding the same assaulting information right there in front of him. It was still there, and it made him sink deeper into fear, into anger, into dark feelings he couldn't even begin to describe.

How had he let this happen?

He forced his shaking hands to show Chihiro the article, and she began to read until her expression came close to a match with Kohaku's;

_**Aikihara Flats**_

_Sitting atop a hill overlooking the town, this development provides residences for people of any living situation, first-time buyers, and for families of up to five. Provides a spectacular view of both the town and the nature around it. This new complex provides facilities such as a pool, internet and cable, even a natural creek running through it!_

The article continued a bit after that, but Chihiro couldn't bear to read past that. Next to this, there was a pencil drawing of the buildings, both numerous and large. Whatever nature was 'around it', was only that which had survived the bulldozers. There had to be several buildings there, which would obviously take up space that trees and other natural things were taking up. There were certainly lovely-looking trees that served as the border of the forest there, and there was certainly a small, cozy-looking creek pouring between some of the buildings. But there was a haunting absence in the little rendering that left Chihiro feeling hollow and with a hatred for her kind.

Without a word, Kohaku rose from the table, and began to storm out. Akio gave him a look and asked what was going on. Kohaku didn't turn to look at the man, but stopped in the doorway.

"I…have something I need to take care of. My apartment, I just remembered. I need to go tell my landlord that I've returned…" Kohaku murmured, doing a miracle of a job in keeping his voice calm, considering that the feelings that swirled through him were far from that.

"I can give you a ride, then, if you want," Akio suggested, searching through his pockets absently for his car keys.

"No." Kohaku said, a little rougher than meant. He regained himself, and turned a fake smile. "It's alright, I am fine with walking, but thank you anyway, Ogino-san." With that, Kohaku didn't give Akio a chance to insist.

"Haku," Chihiro whimpered, shooting to her feet and running after him. "I'll be back, dad, sorry!" Chihiro whipped out the door, leaving her family and Rumi to look after her, only one knowing the reasons for both the teenagers' erratic behavior.

Rumi peered with sadness at the paper again, reading the title. 'Aikihara Flats.' Why hadn't she known about this development? She knew about Aikihara, of course, but how did she not know that her clearing was where those bulldozer's sounds were coming from?

"What's up with them?" Lin asked confusedly. With not a word from Rumi, the young girl shrugged and sifted through the photos of her sister's journey.

Rumi watched as Chihiro's parents exited the room in wonderment and confusion, and crumpled the opposing newspaper into as small of a ball as it would go, tossing it then onto the table top and burying her face in her hands.

---

Chihiro sprinted down the streets that she knew so well, the ones that led her to that forest path that led to Aikihara's clearing. Kohaku was nowhere to be found along the way, which didn't surprise her; She had seen how fast he could run when he set himself to it. The words still slid across her vision, those terrible words that had sent this otherwise joyful day to a screeching halt, which had sent Kohaku's world crashing around him. Still, how could they have totally replaced Aikihara's river? This had to be some sort of misunderstanding, she still had to be there. Maybe the picture was just drawn at the wrong angle, and the buildings were hiding the river! Aikihara was strong!

Then again, so was Kohaku.

"No…" Chihiro murmured, gasping for breath and leaning against a wall to catch her elusive breath. "It has to be a mistake. It has to!"

If this was actually happening, if Aikihara really had been replaced, Chihiro didn't know how Kohaku would react. She even feared it.

Chihiro, steeled in her determination to get to Kohaku before he did something brash, pelted off until her lungs burned and until she reached that café at the bottom of Aikihara's forest. Already, she could see the apartments' effect on the landscape; Those terrible buildings peeked over the top of the trees, she could even see them all the way from the bottom of the hill. The dirt path was still there, but would undoubtedly soon be replaced by either a road or a sidewalk, maybe even both. Chihiro scowled at her species, and ran up the dirt path before she gave herself too much time to think about its fate. She ran all the way up the path, and just when it leveled out, she found a familiar rock, the large rock that had set itself in the middle of Aikihara's large clearing.

Just beyond that rock, stood a young man.

"Kohaku," Chihiro asked quietly and timidly, approaching the rock, and looking, with dismay at the extreme makeover the land had been put to. Where the friendly river once gurgled and purred over smooth rocks and sand, there stood a line of large buildings, new and fresh and still smelling of lumber and paint. The dirt had been sowed for the purpose of growing lush, green grass, and baby trees had been planted in pre-determined places, and the clearing had become a gaping one. And, true to the article, a small, natural looking creek wound through a few of the structures. Though Chihiro knew better, this creek was man-made. It didn't even flow the way Aikihara had.

Kohaku ignored the voice behind him, and took everything in, spitefully. This was what his senses had been telling him all along. Had he listened to his instincts…

"Kohaku, I'm so sorry…" Chihiro breathed, coming beside him, wondering if she should touch him. Again, she was afraid of his reaction. Those premonitions, the ones she was sure he was having, they must have been pointing to this. This sin committed against nature by her own kind. _Her own kind_.

"This happened while we were in Germany." Kohaku stated after a small moment of silence that was only broken by the distant grumbling of bulldozers finishing up whatever they had left to do. "It started a month ago, I'm sure." He sighed, feeling his fists tense at his sides.

"What? But how do you know that?" Chihiro asked honestly, not having sensed his well-hidden anxiety that had been plaguing him in that time. Kohaku didn't look at her, but continued.

"I've had this feeling, for the past month. This feeling of desperately wanting to be here at home. It's kept me up at night, Chihiro." He finally looked at her with this, showing his green eyes displaying anguish and anger. "I should have listened." He whispered.

"Your dreams. They were telling you too, right?" Chihiro asked quietly as Kohaku stared at the place in the ground that his sister had once flourished.

"My dreams. I should have put that together." He suddenly grimaced darkly, his fists balling even tighter. "The first one was more of a memory. I was reliving everything that happened to me when my own river got filled in. It felt too real to have just been a memory, though. Now I think I was feeling what Aikihara was feeling…"

"And the second one?" Chihiro urged.

"That one…Aikihara was there, in her human form. She was…bleeding." Kohaku went silent, leaving Chihiro to stare at him. Then he remembered the kanji. He gave a bitter laugh at the realization that the whole thing had been a message. "It makes sense now. She told me to return home, then…" He recalled the last Kanji that she'd displayed to him. "Then she died."

Kohaku felt a tear fall down his cheek, felt his blood running hot through him, his fists tightening so hard he was sure his knuckles were white and that there were crescent wounds forming in his palms.

"I can't believe I didn't see it. Why was I so stupid?!" He suddenly grew angrier, and was feeling a strong urge to punch something. "How could I let this happen!?"

"Haku, it's not your fault!" Chihiro quickly told him, grabbing him by the shoulders. He quickly tore himself from her.

"Yes it is, Chihiro!" He yelled, desperate to stop the tears that were falling uncontrollably down his cheeks. "I felt something was happening, my instincts told me something was wrong!" Chihiro shrank before him, never having Kohaku's rage directed at her. She knew he wasn't angry with her, but it was still frightening to her.

"If I had listened, I could have just flown back here! I could have stopped them! But I didn't, I …" His yelling faded, and he sank to a seat on the surviving rock behind him. "I didn't listen. Aikihara is gone, and I could have done something about it. But I didn't." Shaking hands ran through his hair, and he couldn't bring himself to look up at Chihiro. He wasn't completely hazed in rage to know that he'd just yelled at her, undeserving of it though she was. "I did nothing."

Chihiro felt her own tears begin to sting her eyes, her anger with him for keeping these secrets from her forgotten. Kohaku wasn't providing her with a face to look at, so the girl stared at the ground, finding dirt that was once foreign to Aikihara's clearing. She turned away at this; there was no escaping this horrible tragedy, even the dirt reminded her. Maybe this was her stubbornness that Rumi had told her about, but she would still never blame any of it on Kohaku.

"You must hate my kind." Chihiro suggested to Kohaku quietly, causing him to look up at her, despite whatever dignity he thought he was lacking due to the tears staining his cheeks.

"What?" Kohaku asked her.

"Humans. You must hate us. We took your river, and now we've taken your sister's river." Chihiro looked at him guiltily. "I'm sorry, if that means anything." Her voice grew a bit quieter.

Kohaku looked at her guilt and sighed. Standing up, he came to her, taking her face gently between his hands. Even with as much anger as he had now, his touch was soft and warm to her. It always would be this way, even if only to this one girl. His eyes still couldn't meet hers, however, and he simply stared sadly to the side.

"Don't be, Chihiro. It's not your fault what your kind does to mine." Kohaku whispered to her, as his hands slid delicately down her neck to rest on her shoulders. "I can't say that I don't hate certain humans, but…Let's just say there are good and evil beings in both worlds, spirit and human."

Chihiro looked at him, not knowing what else to say as he pulled away from her, and tread to put them shoulder to shoulder, Kohaku facing the new towering complexes instead of her or the path to town. Following his glaring gaze, Chihiro caught sight of a few workers, construction contractors, it looked like. If Chihiro had to guess, they were likely exploring the grounds of their new development, ensuring everything was in check. They didn't seem to notice the presence of the teenage girl and a livid river spirit.

Chihiro watched as Kohaku suddenly took a couple small steps towards the building, towards the men. She suddenly panicked at this, hoping that he wasn't losing it.

"Haku, wait, what are you doing?" She whispered urgently to him. She understood that these men were probably the target of his anger, but she couldn't let him harm them, no matter how much either of them believed they deserved it.

Kohaku looked sideways at her. "Don't worry, Chihiro. I won't harm them." He seemed to read her mind. "They do deserve this though."

Chihiro stared at him, bewildered, and wondering to the gods what he was talking about. His eyes turned to the accursed buildings, and then lidded with the river spirit's concentration. Yes, he could hear it perfectly. He could hear water pulsing through the walls of each building, the pipes were up and running. He could easily do something.

Kohaku's hand extended, and Chihiro saw a familiar silver light developing in front of his palm, growing larger and brighter by the second. Suddenly, she could hear it as well; the running of water. Water that seemed to rush through pipes with a hum. Even a rumble was starting to developers, the contractors and inspectors seemed to feel it as well.

"Haku," Chihiro warned, a little worried. She knew he was controlling the water. It was his element after all. And he was apparently taking advantage that the liquid was able to be circulated throughout the structures, much like blood in a body.

The rumble grew, the water sounded restless, then angry, then it matched Kohaku's own vengeful feelings. The men, still not noticing Kohaku playing with their creations, were becoming panicked, running around and trying to find the source of the new threat. Chihiro sensed it was close, now, something was going to give. And suddenly, something did.

The walls, to be exact.

Chihiro gasped as cracks that seemed to follow the path of the piping formed in almost every building, allowing an exit for the water that was frantic to get out. Water sprayed from the walls, and obviously from the pipes inside of those walls. Suddenly, everything was louder, would-be strong pipes were still rupturing, walls were giving way to pressure building inside the frames. The water rushing, being pulled by Kohaku from the ground, was deafening among everything else. The cries of the confused and frightened developers only added onto the chaos. Even the glass panes of the windows shook and rattled in the attack, and some even shattered if the stress of the walls was set closely enough to them.

Kohaku watched as he conducted the water through the places, and his lips shifted into something of a heinous grin. They deserved it. They deserved every last ounce of that water to pour through those stupid walls, to destroy the creations that had been so recklessly built on top of his sister's rightful place in the world. He'd tap into every last drop of water available to him to get his point across, if he could.

"Haku, you have to stop!" Chihiro managed to collect the courage to grab the elbow of his magically active arm, trying to lower it. Emerald eyes looked at her listlessly, before turning back to his task. "Please, Haku, at least stop before they see you!" Chihiro hissed, her grip on his arm tightening.

"I couldn't care less if they saw me." Kohaku murmured icily, but still called his magic back to him, watching the water's pressure ease, the sprays from the walls dying into mere dripping into the vast puddles of mud below the cracks. As lost as the men before them were about the occurrence in the first place, their confusion only grew with its sudden stop.

Kohaku decided to have one last sport of fun before he left them alone, though, as he saw one of the men approaching a gaping crack, cautiously. He peered into the crack fearfully, and Kohaku had his fun.

Chihiro caught sight of this man getting sprayed square in the face and stared back at Kohaku as the man was blown backwards into the mud behind him. Emerald eyes were suddenly blank again, but he again sported a grimace, that look of betrayal on his face.

He turned towards town without a word.

"Haku, wait," Chihiro whispered loudly, still concerned about possibly being discovered here. Kohaku walked on, though.

Chihiro had never seen him this depressed before. He didn't even say anything to her. Somehow, silence was far worse than having him vent his anger. She knew her dragon was just keeping this anger inside of him, even if he had just taken a bit of it out. But she knew, those men weren't the ones that he was most angry towards.

Kohaku held the most anger for himself.

"As if it was your fault…" Chihiro said bitterly, crossing her arms and kicking viciously at the foreign dirt beneath her. Kohaku was gone, and she worried for him.

Looking over her shoulder to the hopelessly confused men, who were apparently yelling something about a poltergeist, or angry spirits, or some sort of curse on the land. Well, they had it right at least. The root of their problems was indeed a _very_ angry spirit.

She wondered off silently to hide herself amongst some trees. Leaning against one, she sank to the ground, wrapping her arms around her knees, bringing them to her chest. And there, she lost all sense of time, crying and mourning for the loss of Aikihara, the loss of a beautiful patch of woods, the loss of Kohaku's happiness. Not to mention a good chunk of her respect for humanity.

**-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: **Oh my, I'm so sorry, Aikihara-chan, I luff you!! .:sobs at her own cruelty to her characters:.

A couple of useless notes here… first, I think I did it again with the Howl's Moving Castle references. This time it was when Haku was playing with the water in the buildings…I had him pull the pose Howl did when he was sabotaging the warship in the flower field…along with that awesome little evil grin! .:Swoons at the thought of Haku wearing such a grin:.

Oh, yes, and another thing I did again, was use a Simba's Pride reference. For anyone unfamiliar with that movie, it's sequel to The Lion King, and features Jason Marsden as Kovu. How is this relevant? Well, Jason Marsden also does Haku's voice. I also did this same thing back in LtLA back then, I took one of his lines from Simba's Pride and suited it for the story: 'You'll never hurt Chihiro, or Rumi, not while I'm here.' This time it was 'I did nothing." Yeah, I'm a real nerd like that. .:nervous laughter:.

Also, just thought I'd share this, but when me and my friend went to Germany, my friend's partner actually did shut her eyes automatically when someone took a picture of her. so I really got that idea from there. More explanation later on _why_ Julia does this same thing…remember, most everything happens for a reason… .:shifty eyes:.

So, see you guys later, do check out my other stories, and I'll see you guys again soon, hopefully! I really gotta find a job…and get into college….Rawr!! ToT

_**Love to all of you from the Catgirl!!**_


	5. Graduation

**-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: **Holy crap, how long has it been since I updated this? I'm so sorry to the readers of this story, if there's any left who are patient enough to still be around! As to what the heck happened to me for the past months? Well, first it was Oban Star Racers. Now it's Avatar the Last Airbender. And college, too. Right now I am on break from Avatar for the time being…I just inadvertently found a spoiler that kind of threw a wrench in my fangirling. It's driving me insane, and not in the good happy way. I suppose you could say I'm turning to Spirited Away and Oban Star Racers in order to drown my sorrows.

As for this story, I never intended to end it as unfinished, it just got shoved to the back burner. Once my Oban story really kicked off and I picked up some more fans, I kind of focused my part-time Fanfiction author brain to that. I still don't intend to discontinue it, I love this little arc too much, even though it's been a while and I'm a little rusty with plot details and such.

But this is the last whole chapter I've got from back when I was totally immersed in this story…I've had it for a while, Shame unto me for keeping it to myself for so long!! –crawls to corner of angst- It's a short chapter, too…

Thank you to all the reviewers and anyone patient enough to keep up with me anymore! It means a lot that people like my work, it really does!

Disclaimer: I own nothing of Miyazaki's wonderful work, I hope he doesn't mind my borrowing!

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Chapter 5- Graduation

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Outside her window, birds were singing their tunes to the world, carrying on, joyfully. It was a gorgeous looking day in this early summer, and they were apparently singing their praises. The sound fluttered in her open window, letting the sheer curtain flutter in the breeze that carried them.

It was sad to Chihiro Ogino. Such a beautiful part of their nature, a good spirit that was tied to them, was gone, and they were singing of happy, joyful things.

With a groan, Chihiro turned under her blankets and onto her back, peering at her poster adorned ceiling. She groaned again, finding dragons and their emerald eyes staring back at her. She never foresaw being surrounded by her favorite eyes would be a bad thing, but here she was, wanting to escape them. She closed her eyes from them, finding that her own eyes were burning with the desire to sleep. She had had a terrible night, full of tossing, turning, trying to get comfortable.

She could not get comfortable, all night long.

After finally returning home, and to a slight barrage of questions, she so wanted this whole mess to be some sort of terrible dream. Kohaku was gone, along with his luggage that had still been in the car at the time, and she knew he'd probably gone home. She hoped he had gone home. Rumi had been concerned, asking her immediately if Kohaku was alright. To which, Chihiro's only answer was,

"I don't know…" She murmured those words to no one at all, finding they still held true. She couldn't say anything on Kohaku's real feelings, except that he was depressed, and angry at the world, and himself. Well, it was safe to say that he wasn't alright, that much she did know. But would he ever get over this?

"I don't know either, Chi." A soft voice came from beside her on the floor, though not to as much surprise to Chihiro as it usually would be. Chihiro gave a sideways glance to her current room mate, Rumi.

She too was lying on her back, hugging a pillow close to her chest, looking drained, as if she'd been up all night just as Chihiro had been. Brown eyes turned to look at her best friend, near listless. A tinge of darkness below those eyes signaled that she had at least lost some sleep during the night.

Chihiro turned her gaze back up to her ceiling and sighed.

"I don't know how to handle this, Rumi…" Chihiro whispered. "How are we going to make this right?"

Rumi shifted, and sat with her back now leaning against the bed frame of Chihiro's bed.

"Chihiro, remember when Taro got killed?" She asked her brunette friend. Chihiro nodded. "Remember how Haku was, how he stuck by you? It made you feel better, didn't it?"

Chihiro nodded again, recalling the river spirit's healing effects on her.

"Yeah,"

"Well, maybe you should do the same, you know? Stay by his side, give him a shoulder to cry on, things like that." Rumi suggested quietly, fiddling with a lock of her shoulder length hair.

"Yeah, but you said it yourself, Rumi. He doesn't like to worry me and all that. He's too full of pride to want to cry or show any vulnerability in front of me." Chihiro scowled, wanting again for her dragon not to be so stubborn.

"But he needs you, Chi." Rumi reasoned, turning her head upside down to look at her friend, who was now rising from emerald covers to hug her knees.

"If he needs me like I needed him back then, why'd he walk away without a word?" Chihiro grumbled, her chin settled between her knees, hazel eyes burning to shed tears.

"Because he was most likely really pissed, and didn't want to take it out on you, you dummy." Rumi retorted, shifting to her knees so she could actually look at her friend. "He had just found out, it was still fresh, and you were the only one there to vent to, or on, depending how it went, and the dragon didn't want to lose control. He's had some time to cool off since last night, so it should be safe today when we see him."

"I'm just worried about him, ok? He's angry at himself for this whole mess, I'm more worried about how he feels towards himself." Chihiro told her friend tersely. "I know what it's like, to find yourself in the middle of something, seeing yourself as the cause of a death of a loved one…I remember that feeling."

Rumi's breath caught, as if she were going to say something, but came up with nothing, as she heard her friend say it. Her dark eyes wandered wistfully, and the room was silent for a few seconds. Chihiro's own hazel eyes wandered as well, stopping on a gleaming fragment on the wall, the part of Taro's old mask that he'd given to her.

"When Taro was killed, instead of me," Chihiro's voice suddenly came as very soft, reflecting on the tragedy that occurred three years before. "It left such a worthless, regretful feeling in me, like, if it hadn't been for me, he'd still be here. I felt horrible, like it was totally my fault. Haku feels that now, too, I'm sure of it. I just have no idea how to approach him with it, though."

Rumi gave one last pensive look, before hopping to her feet.

"Well, then that's all the more reason for you to at least try, Chi. You know where he's been, so just take a stab at it!" She coached Chihiro, who was simply staring at her through mussed brown tendrils. "And quit being so damn modest, of course you mean that much and more to Haku, how could you not? He gave up his immortality just to be with you!" With that she yanked the bed sheets off of her friend's knees, revealing her to the world. "If that ain't a sure sign of love, I don't know what is!"

"R…Rumi…" Chihiro stared wide eyed at her friend, stuck for words.

"Now come on, quite pouting and get out of bed, remember, we have a huge day!" Rumi suddenly grinned with the announcement, and strode over to Chihiro's wardrobe, swinging the doors open.

"Oh…Yeah, I nearly forgot!" Chihiro swung her legs off of her bed now, and hurried over to the wardrobe next to her friend. Rumi grinned, and dug out what she was looking for, a pair of hangers with an article on each. Handing one to Chihiro, she held her own up to herself, measuring the sleeves in comparison to her arms.

"I dunno, you think mine is too big for me?" Rumi asked bemusedly, finding the sleeves as being made of too much fabric. Chihiro simply laughed. "Hey, I'm serious, Chi! I am not going to trip over my robe when I get that diploma. Not in front of the whole school!"

Chihiro took her graduation robe off of the hanger and slung it over an arm, then rummaged for something suitable to wear under it.

"No, Rumi, that's my job, as the class klutz, remember? Don't you dare steal it from me!" Chihiro laughed with her friend lightly, hoping that if only there with Rumi, this would be a happy day.

So, with the girls each claiming their corners of the room, they got dressed into their formal wear, before pulling their black dress robes on over their heads. Chihiro stared at the mirror above her dresser, finding she hadn't had any sort of plan in mind for her hair. Surely her mother would object to a plain ponytail, and at least would want her hair up and away from her face, for effect in however many pictures there would be. But there was one more thing that was a must for the outfit, she just needed to find the perfect way to utilize it.

'I wouldn't let you guys miss this for the world,' she inwardly told her favorite hair tie, peering at it as it gleamed in response from her wrist. Chihiro smiled at the gleam, then turned her gaze back towards her sleep-mussed hair in the mirror. Well, the first thing was first, she'd have to comb it.

Rumi, seeming to notice her friend's plight about the whole hair issue, came up behind Chihiro.

"Here, let me French braid it for ya." Rumi said as she stole the brush straight from her friend's hand.

"What? French…?" Chihiro looked at Rumi's reflection, puzzled. She, not being the stylish type to do up her hair in any fancy fashion, had never even heard of such a thing as French braiding.

"Yeah, Chi, French braid. Your hair is long enough to do it. It'll definitely look good on you." With that, the blonde behind her took a gathering of Chihiro's hair, combed it out, then started weaving it into style, plaiting it down the back of her head.

"See, you look awesome! Haku's jaw will drop when he sees you! Now give me Granny's hair tie," Chihiro obeyed with a smile towards her tie, and handed the thing over her shoulder. She felt it being wrapped around her hair at the nape of her neck, and felt a tail of hair lying down her back, long enough to reach her mid-back. "There! Done! See for yourself." Rumi said triumphantly, before reaching for Chihiro's hand held mirror. Using the smaller mirror, Chihiro could see that her usually plain hair had been crafted into a complex but beautiful looking braid. Her hair tie winked back at her, and she smiled.

"Thanks, Rumi," She told her friend gratefully. Rumi smiled from her station in front of the mirror, now putting some dressy barrettes into her own hair.

"Don't mention it. You need to look your best for Haku anyway. Get his mind on other things," Rumi winked mischievously at her companion, who in turn, blushed. Rumi suddenly turned to her friend, looking her over. "There's something missing, though…"

Chihiro stared at her friend, her blush fading, to be replaced with a sort of nervous look. She never really did like being 'made over.' Then came one of the words that Chihiro tended to hate;

"Makeup!" Rumi sang, diving for her bag before Chihiro could stop her. "Come on, Chi, just a little! Maybe just some mascara and eye shadow, it'll make your eyes stand out more!" She called as Chihiro tried, in her dress shoes, to bolt for her door.

"No make up! You know I hate it!!" Chihiro cried, running down the hall, thankful that the rest of her family was already up and down stairs, for all the noise she was making. Rumi followed her, waving a tube of black mascara, if only to tease her friend.

"Chihiro, good morning!" Her mother told her from the bottom of the stairs as Chihiro pelted down them as fast as her shoes would allow.

"Don't let her do it, don't let her put that junk on me!" Chihiro laughed as she hid playfully behind her mother. Rumi stopped on the open landing, and leaned over the banister to look at her friend.

"Aw, fine, you're no fun, I guess there's just more for me then!" Rumi said, before whipping out the brush and doing her own eyelashes up. Chihiro simply stuck her tongue out at her friend above as her mother left the scene.

"Your hair looks nice, by the way, Chihiro," Yuuko said before disappearing into the kitchen.

"Chihiro!" a cheerful voice called, before its owner ran into the room. "Chihiro, look at my dress! Mom just bought it for me yesterday!" Lin gave a slight twirl before her sister, showing off a fancy little number of blue above a set of new black dress slippers. Chihiro lifted her sister into a hug.

"It looks great, Lin-chan! You're gonna be the prettiest little sister in the whole place!" Chihiro beamed as her sister sat on her arm. Lin immediately lit up at the compliment.

"You really mean it? I wasn't so sure that blue was my color…" She tugged a little at the hem of her skirt.

"Don't worry, it's your color." Chihiro laughed at her sister's talk.

"So, you girls ready?" Akio said, coming into the entry room with a camera in hand, and a formal suit on.

Rumi came up behind Chihiro, and both nodded. It didn't take long for Akio to start taking surprise pictures of the two, nor did it take long for Yuuko to start beaming and nearly crying at the same time about her two girls growing up. And when Rumi's parents came over, it only doubled to the spontaneous picture-taking and happy weeping of mothers. Lin, Rumi and Chihiro were simply caught in the middle of all the chaos, and sometimes barrages of hugs and kisses. Chihiro suddenly wished, now more than ever, that she could just get to the graduation ceremonies to see Haku.

Not only that, but there were guests that she was missing, that couldn't possibly attend; though some were tied to her by the hair tie. She wished her friends could see her on this day, she even wished they could see Haku on this day. Graduation was a big deal, at least in the human word.

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Chihiro couldn't believe it, as she peered around the gymnasium of her school. There were many people, possibly over a hundred of them. Both the sea of chairs on the floor and the bleachers on the sides were filling up, students and parents marched in. It was a little monotonous, though, all the students were dressed alike, for the black robes. She filed in with her classmates to the applause of the parents in the bleachers, in the alphabetical line they'd been ordered into just outside.

Looking to her side, Chihiro was lucky enough to spot her parents and ecstatic seven year old sister, waving and calling to her. Next to them, Rumi's parents did the same, waving and cheering both the girls on. Both of their fathers were snapping photos like there was no tomorrow. She caught sight of Rumi, just one person in front of her, giving her parents a wave from the line, and decided to do the same for her own family.

Still, with all the faces she saw, the endless sea of them that had come to wish her and her class good luck in the world after high school, with all the decoration and celebratory music, Chihiro felt disappointed. She felt strangely empty, and even worried, even more so than she had been that morning. There was one face that had yet to make an appearance.

"Kohaku, where are you?" She murmured to herself, trying to focus her attention on keeping her shoes and robes from meeting in such a way that would end up with her face on the floor. Her mind didn't cease wandering back to that one face, that one clearing, that one day when everything had stopped for Kohaku.

"You say something, Ogino?" The boy in front of her asked over his shoulder as their line turned into a new row of seats, the ones they were going to undoubtedly be sitting in for a while to come.

"No, it was nothing. Sorry, Nobara-kun." Chihiro waved it away awkwardly. The boy named Nobara simply shrugged and sat into his seat, leaving one empty between himself and Rumi.

That empty seat, Chihiro was regretful to notice, was Kohaku's rightful seat. She sat down heavily, and glanced back down the line of students still pouring in, hoping for a sign of him. If he didn't get there before the chairs were filled, he would be forced to forgo the ceremony.

Finding the line of students to be fruitless, Chihiro looked ahead, spying the pile of scrolls, that she knew were diplomas, lying on a table. What would happen if he weren't there to claim his?

Rumi caught her friend's eye from two seats down, and gave her a smile.

"Don't worry, he'll be here!" Rumi told her over the applause in the place. 'I hope so, anyway…' she added inwardly and apprehensively, her own dark eyes scanning the seemingly endless crowds with worry. Perhaps the whole thing with Aikihara had affected him more deeply than either of them first thought; Rumi was sure it wasn't like Kohaku to miss an important event such as graduation.

Chihiro managed to fold her hands in her lap, but found it hard to keep them still. The closer it drew to the beginning of the ceremony, the more and more students that filed in, the more nervous she got. It wasn't even about Kohaku missing it so much; now that she was here, graduation seemed like something more for the parents than the students. If it were for the students alone, it would just be one wild party. She didn't so much care about him missing out, because if anything, this would likely be long and boring.

But his absence gave way to whole arsenal of worries. Where exactly was he, and what was he doing? Was he still angry at himself? It had to be a big deal. A human tradition though this was, Kohaku had always seemed to her like the type that wouldn't miss such an important ceremony. This really meant the future of his human life, but he was nowhere to be seen.

Finally, the last student took their seat, and the applause started to die down at the signal of the principal. Soon they were launched into a series of speeches, both form teachers and hard-working students. For a second, she had a hope that perhaps Kohaku was one giving a speech; it would provide a relieving excuse for his absence in the crowd of students. He was one of the top in their class, after all. But time wore on, and so did the speeches, and it was clear to her that Kohaku was not there.

Rumi couldn't help but cast worried glances at Chihiro for the whole ceremony, as they waited for their row to be called up. The poor girl was on edge, she looked as though she just wanted to be done with the whole ceremony, which Rumi could easily say was true. Her eyes drifted to the empty seat next to her, and suddenly became angry. Kohaku apparently had no clue about how much he was worrying Chihiro, for a guy who wanted to avoid that very thing.

At long last, it was time for the two girls and their row to stand and march up to the platform to accept their own diplomas.

"Namiko Rumi," chimed the Principal's voice over the speakers, while Rumi accepted her scroll with a distracted smile and a bow to match the teacher who handed the things out. Hers and Chihiro's families could both be heard above the racket. The boy called Nobara stepped up now.

"Nigami Hakuno," The Principal then said, obviously missed the fact that said boy was missing, letting a little pang go through Chihiro. It still gave her a little blind hope that perhaps from somewhere in the crowd, Kohaku would turn up.

"Uh, sir, he's not here. I'm Nobara." Nobara said mutedly to the Principal, who acted quickly to cover up his blunder, moving to the next name on the list.

'Kohaku, if you're out there, this would be the time!' Chihiro worried to herself impatiently, getting tired of the reminders of her dragon's absence.

"Ah, yes, I apologize, Nigami-san seems to be absent for the ceremony…No matter, onto the next," He cleared his throat and announced Nobara properly. Chihiro stepped up next, just as Nobara stepped off the platform, down a small stairway in the front. "Ogino Chihiro,"

Chihiro could now hear her family's loud cheering, and even discerned her sister's voice. Her heart raced as she was set into the attention of the whole gymnasium, and accepted her own diploma with a bow. She paused just briefly at the top of the stairs, peering out at the crowd, searching for a face.

The one face she wanted so much to honor, the one person she really wanted to make proud. Her face faded slightly; that one face still just was not there.

**-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: **Again, sorry for the shortness, and the angstiness…

And I really don't know what makes up a Japanese graduation ceremony…So I designed it after my own. It was a very boring thing, indeed. –nods-

And I think this is the first place my little made-up name for Haku came in, right? Nigami Haku? Yeah, I just took Nigihayami and shortened it for Haku's human alias….Uh, I'm not sure if it means anything though…If it does, it was totally unintentional.

I've already begun the next chapter, but I don't know how long it will be til my next update. I'll try to be better than this long wait, though!!

And also, I don't know if I've posted this in my Spirited Away stories or not, but I do have a DeviantArt account, and there's one pic I drew a while back that's kind of a poster for Learning To Love Again. And I've also had the urge to do some Rumi art, since I've been neglecting my Spirited Away fandom lately. Anyway, My name on there is this: KyokoMari. If anyone wants to drop by and say hi to my artwork as well, that'd be great.

Love you all for being so patient, sorry for the wait and the short chapter!


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